There's more: Family dynamics
by Pippeloen
Summary: Previous title: There's more: Lissy's first day. Story that follows after my AU: There's more. What happens when Sam loses sight of what really matters. Will the Swarek family be able to work it out?
1. Chapter 1

Okay, here's a little something I came up with today.

This one shot follows up after my story _There's more, _you don't have to read that story for this one to makes sense.

Basically: Andy had a daughter (Lissy), before meeting Sam. They got together, got married, Sam adopted Lissy and Sam and Andy had a baby together (Noah).

XX

Sam opened the front door, even before the door opened he knew what would be behind that door: chaos. Lissy was four now, she would start kindergarten tomorrow and she was ready for it. Like really, really ready for it. Ever since Andy gave birth to Noah, Lissy had been a little challenging and Sam couldn't really blame the little girl. In her short life she went through so many changes, she needed stability right now; kindergarten would give her that stability.

''Hey sweetheart,'' Sam greeted Andy in the kitchen. ''The house looks very tidied up, you had a lot of free time on your hands?''

''Lissy is nervous,'' Andy admitted. ''She acted like an angel all day long, even wanted to have naptime with Noah.''

''Wow,'' Sam said. Lissy decided a very long time ago that naps weren't for big girls. ''Where is she?''

''On the couch, in front of the TV. Noah is in his play pen, but he just fell asleep again.'' Andy didn't allow Lissy to watch a lot of TV, but a little moment before dinner wouldn't hurt her. ''Can you check on her? Dinner is almost ready.''

''Yeah.'' Sam kissed Andy one more time and walked towards the living room. Lissy was lying on the couch on her belly, she had her gaze on the TV. By the sound of it she was watching some toddler cartoon.

''Hey Lissy,'' Sam greeted his daughter. He walked over to the couch and planted a kiss in her hair. ''What are you watching?''

''Dora,'' Lissy answered. She quickly sat on her knees and crawled over to Sam, when she reached him she sat down on his lap and put her head on his chest. Sam put his hand on Lissy's back and pressed another kiss to her hair.

''What did you do today?'' Sam asked. Lissy normally was a little tornado, but right now she was very calm.

''I played with Emily.'' Lissy had gotten a baby born from her parents for her birthday, since that day Lissy and the doll were inseparable. ''Mommy let me bath her together with Noah.''

''Sounds like fun.'' Sam let out a yawn. He had a long day, but he wanted to join Andy when she would bring Lissy to school tomorrow. That meant doing a little more work today, so he could come in late tomorrow.

''Cover your mouth when you yawn,'' Lissy told him.

''Think you're really smart huh?'' Sam smirked while tickling Lissy. Lissy started laughing and covered her belly with her hands.

''Mommy!'' she yelled out. ''Daddy is teasing!''

Andy appeared in the doorway and smiled at the sight in front of her. ''That is just mean,'' she said. ''Come on, help me tickle him.'' Lissy and Andy teamed up and started tickling Sam. Sam wasn't ticklish at all, but pretended like he was. Soon he was lying on his back on the couch, with Lissy sitting on his stomach. Andy was standing next to the couch, helping her daughter. Lissy was laughing out loud and that put a smile to her parents faces.

''Okay, I surrender.'' Sam put his hands in the air and gently lifted Lissy off of him.

''Yeah and dinner is ready,'' Andy quickly added. ''So wash up young lady,'' she told her daughter.

Sam heard a cry coming from the corner of the room. He quickly walked towards the play pen that was standing there and took his son in his arms. ''Hey buddy, you done sleeping?''

Andy had already set the table, so Sam walked towards the dining table and sat down with Noah in his arms. Even though it was a little inconvenient to eat with a baby in your arms, Sam and Andy always had dinner with Noah there. This was pretty much the only time they had as a family on working days. Noah was a very satisfied baby, so it wasn't even that much trouble. Usually when either Sam or Andy would finish dinner, they would take the baby so that the other person could finish dinner.

During dinner Sam and Andy both spent time talking to Lissy, usually by talking to her, she got distracted enough to eat. Andy had always been worried about Lissy's eating, Lissy was very thin and never ate properly. Today she didn't eat a lot either, but Andy guessed that were nerves.

After dinner Sam checked his watch. He wanted to stay home with his family, but he also needed to do some more paperwork in order to come in late tomorrow. ''I need to go to the office for an hour, okay?'' he asked Andy. He hated leaving her alone again, especially when she already spent the entire day alone with the kids.

''Again?'' Andy asked. ''Feel like I haven't seen you for more than an hour straight in weeks.''

Sam knew she was right, he hadn't been a very devoted husband lately. Since he was a detective at guns and gangs, he worked more hours than he did before. Most of the time he spend at home, went to Lissy and Noah. ''I know, but I want to bring Lissy to school tomorrow. I promise we'll go out somewhere next week, okay?''

Andy sighed and nodded. Even though she didn't like it, she knew Sam's job was important to him. ''Will you be late?''

''No, just an hour or so.'' Sam quickly pressed a kiss to Andy's forehead and kissed Lissy goodnight too. He grabbed his jacket, keys and headed back to work.

XX

''I'm not going tomorrow,'' Lissy said with her arms folded over her chest. ''I want to stay with you.''

''You're a big girl now sweetie,'' Andy tried. ''Big girls go to school. I bet you'll have tons of fun.''

Lissy was sitting in her bed, already dressed in her pink hearts pyjama's. ''Can you stay with me?''

''We already told you; Daddy and I are going to bring you to school. After that, daddy has to work and mommy will take Noah home again. We'll pick you up when school is over.'' Andy let her hand run through her daughter's hair. ''You liked it the last few times right?'' Lissy had already been to school a few times. All those times she only stayed for an hour, but every time they went home with a happy girl.

''Don't know,'' Lissy said. ''Why can Noah stay with you?''

''Noah is a baby, when you were a baby you were with me all the time too.'' Andy slowly laid down and pulled her daughter down with her. She hoped Lissy would relax a little if Andy stayed with her for a while.

''Daddy wasn't there when I was a baby.''

Andy took a deep breath and felt a pang in her stomach. Sam and her had agreed to always be honest with Lissy, but she wished things were different. She wouldn't change a single thing about her daughter, but sometimes she wished Sam was her biological dad. Right now Lissy was young, she was satisfied with every explanation her parents provided. One day that would change, one day things would become complicated.

''No, he wasn't,'' Andy agreed. ''But when he met you, he immediately was crazy about you. And the kids at school will be too.'' Andy watched her daughter looking at her. ''You're such a big girl, you need to learn new things.''

''You learn me,'' Lissy suggested.

Andy chuckled and kissed Lissy's cheek. ''I can't teach you everything, Miss Katie will teach you.''

''I want to give daddy a goodnight kiss.'' Lissy looked at her mom with her big brown eyes.

''Daddy went to work again, you'll see him tomorrow.'' Andy checked her watch and noticed Sam should have been home already. ''Now you're going to sleep, because we've been talking way too long and it's past your bed time.''

Andy pressed her lips to Lissy's forehead one last time and got out of the girls bed. She tucked in Lissy and wished the girl goodnight. Andy flicked out all the lights while she moved down the hall. A quick peek in the nursery told her that her son was still asleep. Noah was three months old now and his parents couldn't complain about his sleeping pattern. He slept through most of the nights and hardly ever cried.

When Andy reached the living room, she turned on the TV and sat down on the couch. She was exhausted. She hadn't worked in months, but still she felt like she could use a vacation. Andy loved her kids more than she loved her own life, she really did. Still, spending all her days at home with the kids, that wasn't what she wanted. She couldn't wait to go back to work, but Sam and her agreed that Noah was too young for her to start work already.

Besides, first they wanted Lissy to be settled in school. It would be better for her if Andy would be home every day when she got home. Stability, that's what her kids needed right now, so that was what she would provide.

Forty minutes later, there was still no sign of Sam. Andy hated being the kind of wife that called her husband whenever he was later than planned, but she really just wanted some time alone with him. She grabbed the phone and dialled the familiar number, when it went to voicemail, she sighed.

''Hey, it's me. Guess you're still at work. Come home as soon as you can, okay? Lissy was really nervous, so I'm not sure she'll sleep through the night. Anyway, love you.'' When she ended the call, Andy let herself fall into the couch. She might as well enjoy the quietness for as long as it would last.

XX

Two hours later than planned, Sam made it back to the house. He listened to Andy's voicemail when he left his office, but decided it was better to just go home than to call her back.

He found her on the couch, snoring softly. ''Hey,'' Sam tried to wake her up. Andy slapped away his hand and turned around. ''Andy, wake up.''

Andy's eyes fluttered open and she took a moment to take in her surroundings. ''What time is it?'' she asked.

''Late, sorry,'' Sam apologized. ''It took more time than I thought.'' Sam lifted Andy's head and sat down. He put her head in his lap and gently massaged her scalp.

''It always takes more time than you think,'' Andy said, her tone sharp.

Sam sighed, knowing this could easily turn into an argument. ''I know, I said I was sorry.'' They were both silent and Sam's hand moved to Andy's neck, he used both his hands while he gave her a neck massage. ''You're tensed.''

''Yeah, you try spending every single day with a baby, a toddler and a household to keep up with.''

''I thought we agreed you would stay home, at least till Lissy's settled in school and Noah is a bit older.''

''Yeah, we agreed Sam,'' Andy said, clearly annoyed. She removed his hands from her neck and got off the couch. She started clearing the coffee table and didn't look at Sam anymore. ''I know it's best for the kids, but it's heavy, okay? It would be nice if you would come home every now and then to help out.''

''I know it's been a busy few weeks, but you can't say I'm never there for the kids.'' Sam's tone changed too, he raised his voice a little and stood up too. ''I have been here for everything that matters. The only reason I went back to work tonight, is because I want to be there to bring Lissy to school tomorrow.''

''I know Sam, you're a good father and I never said anything that would suggest otherwise. It just would be nice if you would be here every now and then to help with the little things.''

''Like?'' Sam asked.

''When was the last time you vacuumed? When was the last time you cleared the dishwasher? I know I'm home every day, but it's a lot Sam.''

''Look, I'm working a big case right now. When this ends..''

''When this ends, the next big case will come,'' Andy filled in. ''I know you love your job, I know it's important.''

''You are more important,'' Sam promised. ''Our family is more important.''

''I know you feel that way, just please try and show it every now and then too.'' Andy sighed. ''I'm just so tired and we haven't seen each other alone in ages.''

''I know,'' Sam agreed. He walked over to his wife and grabbed the glass in her hand. Once the glass was on the coffee table again, he put his arm around his wife and pulled her to his chest. ''I'm sorry I haven't noticed, I'll work on it, okay?''

Andy reluctantly agreed. She knew Sam tried, but this wasn't the first time they had an argument about it. Probably wouldn't be the last time either. ''You really are the best dad, but I miss you as my husband.''

Sam kissed her temple and then pushed up her chin so he could kiss her on the lips. ''We'll bring Lissy to school together tomorrow. I can probably come home for an hour with you after that and I'll try to come home early.''

They stood together like that for about a minute, when Sam came up with something. ''I'm going to grab a shower okay? I'll be fast.''

''Yeah,'' Andy agreed.

XX

Sam showered as fast as he could and then grabbed a towel and laid it down on the bed. Dressed in only a pair of sweatpants he went downstairs. ''Come with me,'' he told Andy.

''Where to?'' Andy asked.

''Bedroom,'' Sam answered.

''It's nine thirty.'' Andy looked confused.

''Come on, I've got something for you.'' Sam grabbed Andy's hand and helped her up. ''I'm sorry I haven't been home much. Tonight is about you.''

When they reached their bedroom, Sam led her inside. Andy took in the room and saw a towel on the bed and candles on the nightstand. ''What's this?'' Andy asked.

''For you,'' Sam answered. ''I should have been at home more, you're tensed and stressed. So lie down and I'll massage your back.''

Andy let herself fall back against Sam's chest. ''Thank you,'' she whispered.

''Come on.'' Sam tugged on Andy's shirt and Andy let him take it off of her. When she was naked he motioned for her to lie down on the bed. Andy laid down on her stomach and Sam straddled her thighs. Slowly he moved all the hair to her side, after that he picked up a bottle with oil he placed on the nightstand. ''You look amazing,'' he praised her.

''I know I promised you I'd fit into my wedding dress after three months again, but I don't think I'm quite there yet.'' Andy chuckled and was grateful for the change in Sam. She expected Sam to be pissed, but he was understanding.

''I don't care,'' he promised. ''You look more beautiful than ever.'' While they were talking Sam's hands moved over Andy's upper back.

''Yeah, right.''

''Yeah.'' Sam meant it. Sure, Andy weight a little more than before Noah, but she never looked more beautiful to him. She was softer and glowed more, at least when she wasn't exhausted like today.

After that they both stayed silent. Sam spent the better part of an hour massaging Andy. When he finally was satisfied with his work, he pressed his lips to the back of her neck.

''That was amazing,'' Andy moaned. ''I don't think I've been this relaxed since.. since I don't know when.''

Sam dropped down next to Andy and played with her hair. ''So, you ready for tomorrow?''

''Yeah, she's ready for it, right?'' Andy asked.

''She is," Sam agreed. ''I know she'll be nervous tomorrow, but she'll get used to it so fast, you'll see.''

''Mm, just hope she'll be happy there. You know, make friends and stuff.''

''She will be great, she's our daughter,'' Sam promised.

They laid together like that until Noah started crying. Sam checked the clock and noticed it was time for his late night feeding. ''I'll get him,'' he told Andy.

Sam quickly left the bed, afraid that Noah would wake Lissy. When he reached the nursery, he lifted his son into his arms. ''Hey buddy, hungry are we?'' Sam noticed there probably was another reason for Noah's crying too, so he changed his diaper. When he was done he brought Noah into their bedroom.

Andy was sitting up straight with a t-shirt on. She smiled when she saw Sam with their son. ''Come on,'' she held out her arms and Sam gently placed Noah in her arms. While she was nursing their son, Sam used the bathroom and got ready for bed. When he was ready, Noah was still drinking. Sam decided to check on Lissy and walked towards her bedroom. A smile formed on his lips when he saw his little girl fast asleep, Sam still couldn't wrap his head around how much she looked like Andy.

Noah still changed every day, sometimes he recognized something of himself, sometimes Andy. Sam stayed in the door opening for a few moments, before walking downstairs and making sure all the lights were off. When he reached his bedroom again, Noah was asleep.

''Give him, I'll bring him back to bed.'' Sam took Noah and brought the little man back into the nursery. He pressed his lips to Noah's forehead before lowering him into his crib.

XX

The next morning Sam woke early. He heard movement from Lissy's room, so he went to check it out. They had given Lissy a light with a timer, the deal was that Lissy stayed in bed until that light came on. Lissy listened to that pretty well and when Sam walked into her room, she was indeed still in bed.

''Ready for your first day at school sweetheart?'' Sam asked.

''My tummy hurts,'' Lissy said. She pointed at her belly and looked sad. ''Can I stay with mommy?''

Sam chuckled, Lissy probably remembered she had to stay home from daycare whenever she was sick. ''No Lis, you're going to school.''

''Now?'' Lissy asked. She was interrupted when Noah started crying. Right on cue Sam heard the alarm clock in his bedroom go off too.

''Yeah, we are getting ready now. Go use the bathroom and I'll come and help you get dressed, okay?''

The morning routine was pretty much the same every day in the Swarek household. Andy would feed Noah while Sam would get Lissy ready for the day. After that Andy would make Lissy breakfast while Sam changed Noah. Today this happened like every other day, only today they all headed towards the truck when they were dressed.

Lissy was wearing a red t-shirt with jeans. Andy had braided her hair and Sam saw Andy was nervous too. He grabbed her hand over the console en squeezed her hand. ''It's going to be fine,'' he told her.

Andy gave him a quick smile and turned her focus to her daughter again. Lissy was quiet, which was never a good sign. When they reached the school Sam parked the car. While Andy grabbed Noah from his car seat, Sam lifted Lissy out of the car.

They walked to the school as a family, Lissy's hand in Sam's, Noah in Andy's arms. When Sam saw all the other kids he wanted to pick up Lissy and drive her home again. At daycare, Lissy was one of the biggest kids. Compared to some of the kids here, Lissy was very small.

When they reached the classroom, Lissy's teacher approached them immediately. The few times Lissy went to school to get used to everything, Andy had taken her. Now Miss Katie went straight for Sam. ''You must be Lissy's father,'' she welcomed him.

After she introduced herself to Sam, she lowered herself to Lissy. ''We are all very excited to have you here today Lissy. Do you remember what chair is yours?''

Lissy nodded and looked up to Sam. ''Which one is yours sweetheart?'' Sam asked.

''Butterfly,'' Lissy answered.

Sam looked confused, but Andy helped him out. ''There are stickers on the chairs. Lissy's chair has a butterfly sticker on it.''

''Smart,'' Sam said. ''Well, let's find your chair then.'' Andy stayed with Lissy's teacher and asked a few things. Sam walked Lissy to her chair and crouched down in front of her. ''Lucky girl, sitting next to the teacher.''

Lissy just nodded and Sam could see she was on the edge of tears. ''No tears, okay?'' Sam asked. ''You're a big girl, it's time for school.''

Lissy nodded again. ''Can you stay with me?''

Sam felt his heart breaking a little bit. If anybody would have told him four years ago that he would be a sucker for a four year old, he would have laughed. Truth is, right now he would do pretty much anything for this girl. ''I can't, daddy has to go and make money. Look, all of the other mommy and daddy's are leaving too. Mommy will pick you up later, okay?''

''Okay,'' Lissy said with a brave voice.

''That's my girl.''

Andy joined her husband and daughter and gave Lissy a big hug. ''I'm so proud of you sweetie,'' she praised her daughter. ''You will have so much fun.'' Andy kissed her daughter and Sam took Noah, so she would have her hands free.

''I'll be here when school is over, okay?'' Lissy nodded again and looked around. Miss Katie clapped in her hands three times, apparently a sign for all the kids to lower their voices.

Andy gave Lissy one more kiss and grabbed Sam's hand. They walked out of the classroom and looked through the window one more time. Lissy was talking to her teacher and was already laughing at something she said.

''She'll be fine,'' Andy said, more to herself than to Sam.

''She'll be perfect,'' Sam agreed.

XX

Sam got home from work that evening a little before dinner was ready. He wanted to be home sooner, but there was a problem with one of his UC officers. As much as he wanted to go home, he had a responsibility. It was his job to keep the guy safe.

''Sorry,'' he said when he entered the house. ''There was a problem with Grey, he thought he got made.''

Andy never met the guy, but knew undercover officers depended on her husband. ''Everything okay?''

''Yeah, I think they're just testing him, but I don't want to take any chances. There will be surveillance all night.'' When he saw Andy's face fall, he quickly wrapped his arm around her. ''I handed it off. Told them to call me if they really needed me, but to leave me alone if they could handle it alone.''

''Okay,'' Andy smiled.

''Daddy!'' Lissy came running into the kitchen. She crashed into Sam's legs and giggled when she fell down. ''I learned a song today.''

Sam's attention quickly shifted towards his daughter. ''You did? What song?'' he asked.

''I don't remember.'' Lissy shrugged and turned around again.

''So, did you have fun at school?'' Sam asked.

''I made a drawing,'' Lissy said, as if that would answer his question. ''Miss Katie said it was pretty.''

''Bet it was.''

''Come play with me?'' she asked Sam.

''Not now, wash your hands,'' Sam ordered. ''We're having dinner, mommy is almost ready.''

''I want to play first,'' Lissy said with a frown.

''No discussion, wash your hands.'' Sam pointed towards the sink and waited until Lissy started moving towards it.

They had dinner and when everybody was finished, Sam told Andy to go into the living room, he would clear the table. When everything was set, Sam walked into the living room and smiled at the setting in front of him. Noah was lying on a play mat, Andy was resting on her elbows above their son's body. Lissy was sitting next to them, playing quietly.

Sam joined his family on the floor and gave Lissy some well deserved attention. When bedtime arrived, he was the one that brought her to bed. It had been a long time since he did that. Lissy was asleep before he even finished reading her a story. Sam pressed his lips to Lissy's temple and turned off the lights in the room.

When he joined Andy in the living room, she was sitting there with Noah.

''Isn't it bedtime for this little man?'' Sam asked.

''I don't think he'll go to sleep yet, he slept a lot today.'' Andy yawned and Sam took Noah from her. He placed the little boy on his chest and wrapped his right arm around Andy.

''She did good today?'' Sam asked his wife.

''Yeah, teacher said we could be proud.'' Andy lifted her head to kiss Noah's head. ''I've been thinking,'' Andy started again.

''Uh oh, should I be worried?'' Sam asked.

Andy lightly swatted his chest, careful to avoid her son. ''Jerk.'' She settled back into Sam's arms and started talking again. ''When do you think everything will be settled down?''

''What do you mean?'' Sam asked

''Lissy's school, Noah's schedule,'' Andy tried to explain.

''I don't know, I'd say Noah has a good schedule right now. He sleeps through most nights already. And with Lissy it will depend on how everything goes.. I think she'll be fine, she's an easy kid.''

''Frank called, asked me when I thought I'd be back.'' Andy admitted.

''What did you say?'' Sam shifted Noah on his chest because he began to fuss. He placed the little man on his back, so he could look around a little more.

''That I'd discuss it with you.''

''But you want to go back now?'' Sam didn't think that would be a good idea, but he couldn't exactly force her to stay at home.

Andy shook her head. ''No, not right now. I'm not in any shape to go back.''

Sam sighed. ''You look great.''

''Well, even if that's true, there's no way I can run after criminals right now.''

''So, what are you suggesting?'' Sam asked.

''At first I thought I'd start training, go back in a couple of months, but then Frank mentioned there's an opening for a detective rotation.''

''You want to take it?'' Sam asked.

''What do you think? It would be a lot of work, but I could do all the tests while I'm on maternity leave, right?''

''If this is what you want, I've got your back.''

''I think I want this,'' Andy said. ''I know we've got a risky job anyhow, but with these two at home, maybe I'll be more comfortable working as a D.

Sam thought about it, he would lie if he would say he didn't agree with her. He hated it when she was out on the streets. It wasn't that he didn't trust her, he trusted her with his life. She was partnered with Oliver most of the time since he left 15th, that made Sam feel a little bit better. Still, even with the best partner in the world, a lot could go wrong. ''If you want this, then I've got your back,'' Sam promised.

''Like always.''

XX

_A little trouble in paradise, but that's not abnormal, right?_

_Let me know what you think!_


	2. Chapter 2

_I saw a few options for this story to continue, so here's another chapter.  
There won't be so many chapters and I promise I won't drag it out!_

XX

Andy sighed and rocked her son back and forward. Noah had never been as difficult as today, he had been crying more hours than not. Lissy was at school and Andy had been meaning to do some work around the house, but so far all she did was one load of laundry. ''Come on sweetie,'' Andy cried out. ''What's going on?'' Andy sat down on the coach with Noah on her chest. She had tried everything the books tell you to do, but nothing seemed to work today.

After another hour Andy gave up. She brought Noah to his nursery and made sure the room was extra dark. She gave him his blanket and put on a music box. After she turned on the baby monitor, she headed downstairs. She could hear her sons cries, but she told herself she needed to let him cry. He would probably exhaust himself and fall asleep after a while.

Andy felt a lot of sympathy for mother's with cry babies. Both her kids hardly ever cried, but after one day of this, she already was exhausted. It hurt to let her boy cry like that and when Noah wasn't asleep yet after another 30 minutes, Andy took him out of his crib again. ''I really don't know how to help you,'' she muttered against Noah's forehead. ''What's wrong sweetie?''

After she had walked downstairs, Andy sat down on the coach again and tried feeding Noah. His schedule was completely messed up today because of all the crying, so maybe he was hungry now. Noah turned away his head a few times and Andy let out a small sob, she grabbed her cell phone and dialed a familiar number.

''Hey, what's up?'' Traci answered the phone.

''It's Noah,'' Andy said. ''He's been crying all day long, won't go to sleep, won't drink. It's never been this bad with Lissy, what can I do? Did Leo ever have days like these?''

''Oh sweetie,'' Traci sounded sympathetic. ''Maybe he's just sick? Leo would always calm down when I laid him down and rubbed his belly gently. And else just hold him close, there will always be days like this and they suck, but tomorrow or another day he'll do something new and it will all be worth it.''

''I know,'' Andy agreed. ''It's just hard and I have to pick up Lissy in an hour.''

''Can't Sam do that?'' Traci suggested.

Andy snorted, since they had talked about Sam's work pattern, things hadn't really improved. It was two months later now. Lissy was doing well in school, she really seemed to enjoy herself. Noah was a happy (well, most days) and healthy five month old baby. The only thing wrong in the Swarek household was Sam and Andy's relationship. Sam left the house earlier than he did before now a days. On most days Andy had to dress and feed Noah and Lissy by herself. On good days Sam was home a little before dinner, on bad days he would eat leftovers Andy heated up for him.

Noah didn't notice his father's absence, but Lissy did seem to be affected by it. Andy tried to talk to Sam multiple times, but all those times they ended up fighting. Sam always brushed it off and told her it was just a busy week. Lately all his weeks had been busy and Andy felt her patience slipping by the day. Andy had started studying for the detective exams, it was a lot of work, but she enjoyed it.

''Well, that would require Sam to actually leave his office, so no he probably won't be able to do that.'' Andy sounded a lot more bitter than she liked, something had to change, but she didn't know how to change anything. It's not like she wasn't still crazy about him, she was. As difficult as it was, Andy had to admit he wasn't the same anymore. Maybe she wasn't the same either, but he definitely changed. Normally all it took was a phone call for Sam to drop everything and be with his family. Right now he probably wouldn't even answer if she called.

''Things are still bad huh?'' Traci knew about their problems. Andy tried to keep it between them, but her best friend saw right through the facade.

Andy gave up and let her tears fall, she let out a small sob. ''How can things change so fast?'' she asked. ''We got married less than two years ago, we had a baby five months ago and now I don't even know who he is half of the time.''

As much as Traci hated to admit it, Sam really screwed up lately. ''Just call him,'' she tried. ''He loves you and he's a good dad, he'll be there.''

''Yeah,'' Andy said, not entirely convinced. ''I'll try. Bye Trace..''

Noah was still crying, so Andy changed his position again. She laid him down on the couch and began rubbing his belly. ''I love you sweetie,'' she whispered. ''Even on days like these, I can't imagine a moment where I wouldn't love you.''

Noah actually seemed to relax a little and when Andy tried to put him down again, he actually fell asleep in his crib. Andy let out a sigh of relief and looked at the clock. There was no way Noah would wake up in time to pick up Lissy. If she would have to wake him up his mood probably wouldn't improve.

When she was downstairs again, Andy picked up her cell phone again. She dialled Sam's number and was a little surprised when he picked up after the third ring.

''Swarek,'' he answered.

''Hey, it's me,'' Andy said. ''Look, I know you're busy, but I really need you now.''

''Something wrong with the kids?'' Sam's voice was filled with worry and Andy felt her lips tug upwards, no matter how much was wrong between them now, he really loved their kids.

''No, not really, but Noah has been crying literally since the moment he woke up this morning. He doesn't want to drink, doesn't want to sleep..''

''What's wrong with him?'' Sam asked. ''That's not normal right?''

Sam could still be insecure about Noah. Andy had to remind herself this was all new to him from time to time. Of course he had been there with Lissy, but only since she had been a year. ''No,'' she comforted him. ''It's nothing to worry about, babies can have days like this.''

''What do you need?''

''Well, he actually just feel asleep, but I'm afraid he'll just start crying again if I wake him up..''

''Don't wake him up,'' Sam interrupted her.

''I need to pick up Lissy,'' Andy argued. ''So I was wondering if you could maybe take thirty minutes and pick her up.''

Sam sighed on the other end of the line and Andy knew he would list all the reasons for why he was swamped right now. ''Look, her school is a ten minute drive from guns and gangs. You would only be gone for about thirty minutes and I bet you ate lunch while working, so technically you can take that time.''

''Andy, you know I want to help..'' Sam pleaded with his wife. Deep down he knew he was way too busy, but he was responsible for a lot of big cases right now.

''Then help,'' Andy raised her voice a little. ''I can't even remember the last time you picked up Lissy or brought her to school, it will be good for her too.''

''Andy,'' Sam tried again.

''Please Sam,'' Andy sounded a little desperate. ''I haven't asked for much lately, but I am asking you now to take half an hour to pick up your daughter.''

Sam was silent for a while, so Andy followed his example. ''I'll see what I can do,'' Sam muttered.

''Thanks.''

Fifteen minutes later Andy received a text message. –_Can pick her up, doing surveillance tonight though, so I'll eat here. – _

Andy closed her eyes and reasoned with herself that this was better than nothing. At least he was going to help her out. Still, it would be nice if he would be home to help bath Noah or to spend some alone time with Lissy. Since they had been fighting a lot lately, Andy decided not to complain about this. –_Alright, thanks,-_ she replied.

When Lissy came home that afternoon, the little girl was filled with energy. ''Mommy,'' she screamed when she got home. ''Daddy picked me up from school!''

''I know.'' Andy smiled down at her daughter. ''I bet it was a lot of fun, wasn't it?''

Lissy nodded and turned around when Sam joined them in the living room. ''Daddy, can we go to the playground?''

Sam shook his head and looked at Andy. ''No sweetie, daddy has to work and your brother isn't feeling so well.''

Lissy turned around to look at Andy. ''Mommy, can we go?''

''Sorry sweetie, we have to stay with Noah.'' When Lissy looked more disappointed than ever, Andy crouched down to level with her daughter. ''You know what, how about if we go and make cupcakes?''

Lissy's eyes lit up and she started nodding. ''Can we make cupcakes for daddy and for grandpa and for aunt Traci and for uncle Chris and aunt Sarah..''

''Well make a few to hand out,'' Andy promised. She gently kissed her daughters forehead and ran her hand trough her hair. ''But first we are going to have a drink and some fruit.''

''I'm not hungry,'' Lissy said.

''Fruit, or else no cupcakes,'' Andy strictly warned. Lissy let out a deep breath and walked towards the kitchen. When Andy stood up again, Sam was still leaning against the doorpost. ''Thought you had to work,'' Andy said calmly.

''I do, just wanted to make sure you were alright,'' Sam replied.

Andy looked Sam in the eye and gave him an unimpressed look. ''I'm fine.''

''Okay Andy, whatever you say.''

At that Andy snapped. ''What do you want Sam? Every time I've told you something was wrong this last month, you've shrugged it off. Every time I've asked you to be home more, you tell me it's just a few weeks more.''

''It is,'' Sam insisted.

''No it's not,'' Andy yelled out. ''Do you realise that Lissy has been in school for over two months and this is the third time you've picked her up? And you've only brought her to school two times.''

''You been keeping count?'' Sam asked accusingly. ''We'll divide the tasks more evenly when you go back to work, right now you are home all the time, so you might as well do something more.''

Andy's eyes popped open. ''Excuse me? I'm on maternity leave, not exactly a vacation Sam.''

''Mommy?'' a tiny voice called out from the other side of the room. ''Are you fighting?''

Andy and Sam sighed at the same moment and Sam walked towards Lissy. He picked her up and placed a kiss on the crown of her head. ''No sweetie, it's okay.'' Sam lowered Lissy to the floor again and looked at Andy. ''I'll check on Noah and then I have to go again.''

''Sure,'' Andy said, not willingly to let Lissy hear more about their fight. ''Come on Lissy, let's get that drink I promised you.''

When Sam left for work again, he first checked in the kitchen. He gave Lissy a kiss and promised her he'd bring her to the playground on his next day off. After that he gave Andy a quick peck and told her they'd talk about it later, but that she should stop worrying.

Andy spent the rest of the afternoon with Lissy. Lissy insisted they would make a cupcake for Sam, she asked Andy to make a heart on it. After that Lissy said she would make a drawing with it too, she asked Andy to write down _for daddy_ on top of the drawing. Andy smiled sadly and complied.

When Andy put in a princess DVD for Lissy, she heard Noah crying. Andy could only hope that Noah's nap had changed his mood. Two hours later she knew that this wasn't the case. Andy held Noah close the entire time, but nothing seemed to be good enough.

Lissy was really sweet about it and Andy felt sorry for her daughter. ''Maybe Noah wants a cupcake?'' Lissy suggested after he started crying for the umpteenth time that day.

''No sweetie, you know Noah can only have milk,'' Andy tried. ''I think Noah is just a little bit sick, but because he can't talk, he cries to let us know he's not feeling well.''

Lissy walked over to Andy and tried to fit herself on Andy's lap. She kissed Noah and put her little hand against his cheek. ''Get better Noah, I love you.''

Andy smiled and put her free arm around Lissy. ''You are the best big sister, you know that?''

Around seven, Andy was able to bring Noah to bed again. He fell asleep fairly quickly and Andy let out a sigh of relief. When she walked downstairs again, she told Lissy it was time for bed. Andy helped Lissy shower, brush her teeth and go to the bathroom. When Lissy was in bed, Andy fell down next to her daughter.

''Adam was really sad today,'' Lissy said when Andy stayed quiet for a while.

Andy turned to look at her daughter and raised an eyebrow. ''Oh yeah, why's that?'' Adam was a kid from Lissy's class. Andy tried really hard to memorise all the names of Lissy's classmates and by now she knew every single one of them.

''Miss Katie said it's because he will move.'' Lissy looked serious. ''His mommy and daddy don't love each other anymore. Adam's daddy is going to go away.''

''Oh,'' Andy said, not sure how to reply to that. ''Did miss Katie tell you that?''

Lissy nodded. ''Because now Adam is sad and we'll have to be extra nice to him.''

Andy knew her daughter well enough to know something more was bothering her. ''You now daddy and I love you very much, right?''

Lissy slowly nodded and looked at Andy. ''Sometimes you and daddy don't like each other.''

Surprise took over Andy, she really thought they kept the kids out of their problems. Clearly Lissy had picked up more than they thought. ''Daddy and I love each other too,'' Andy promised. ''Sometimes grownups don't agree with each other, but that doesn't mean they don't love each other.''

''Will daddy always live with us?'' Lissy asked, her eyes filled with tears.

Andy closed her eyes and wondered how her daughter was able to be so mature on such a young age. ''I can't promise that sweetheart, but I can promise you that daddy and I will do everything to make sure we will all live together.''

When Andy noticed that answer didn't calm her daughter, she pulled Lissy towards her chest. ''No matter what happens, daddy and I will always love you and Noah more than anything. And because we both love you so much, we will always love each other honey.

''Daddy won't leave?'' Lissy asked again.

After taking a deep breath, Andy cupped her daughters face and ran her thumb over her cheek. ''Daddy will always love you and will always be there for you when you need him.'' Andy avoided the difficult question. She knew Sam and her were going through a rough patch, but she believed things would be okay again. No matter how difficult things were right now, she still loved him with everything she had. She knew he felt the same way.

Andy picked a book from Lissy's shelf and started reading her a story. When she closed the book, she gave Lissy another kiss and wished her daughter goodnight. After flicking off all the lights, she headed downstairs where everything was quiet.

XX

When the alarm clock went, Andy groaned and turned over. ''God,'' she moaned. ''How is it morning already?''

Sam flipped over to his stomach and closed his eyes again. ''And he's silent now, go figures.''

Noah had woken up several times during the night. Andy got him most times, but after the third time she kicked Sam out of bed and ordered him to go get him.

''Maybe he's teething already,'' Andy suggested. ''It would be soon, but not impossible.''

Sam flipped over to his back again and ran his hand across his face. ''I get what you meant now yesterday. It's exhausting.''

''Yeah,'' Andy agreed. ''Look, we've got to talk about something.''

''Now?'' Sam asked.

''It's important,'' Andy said. ''I'm worried about Lissy.''

''Why?'' Sam asked, he turned to his side so he could face Andy. ''There was nothing wrong with her yesterday.''

''She started talking about a kid in her class yesterday..'' Andy began. ''Apparently his parents are getting a divorce and Lissy seemed.. I don't know, worried?''

''What did she say?'' Sam asked.

''She asked me if you will stay with us and she knows we've been fighting lately..'' Andy hesitated before she added those last words, but it was the truth.

Sam kept his gaze on Andy and grabbed her hand. ''We are adults and we're married Andy, of course we will fight every now and then. So, we'll work at it.''

''How?'' Andy asked. ''I know we've had this discussion about a million times, but you have to agree with me that you haven't been home much lately. How can we work at us when you are never here? And when you are here, you spent all the time with the kids. And you should, they miss you and they deserve your attention...''

''Andy,'' Sam cut her off. ''I know, okay? I've been a lousy dad lately.''

''That's not what I'm saying,'' Andy said, trying to stay calm. ''Don't put words in my mouth, you know that's not what I meant.''

''I already told you a million times that things will get better soon. Do you think I like the fact that I'm hardly ever at home? I would rather be with you and the kids too, but I can't right now.''

''You could say no,'' Andy suggested, knowing how Sam would respond. ''They can't expect you to come running every time they make a call, but because you come every time, they keep on calling.''

''Do you realise I am working this hard for you? I'm making a lot more money now Andy, that means we can set aside more money. Maybe we could buy another house or at least save up for the kids.'' Sam sat up in bed now, while Andy stood beside the dresser.

When Noah started crying again, Andy closed her eyes and straightened her back. ''I'll go get him. You should wake Lissy.''

When Andy left the room, Sam dropped his head down on his pillow again. He didn't understand why Andy couldn't just see that he was doing everything for his family. He wouldn't be working so hard if it wasn't for them, he wanted to provide for them.

Sam looked at the alarm clock and noticed they were already running late, so he rolled out of bed and headed towards his daughter's bedroom.

XX

Later that evening, Andy was standing by the stove when she heard Sam come in. He joined her in the kitchen a few moments later and wrapped his arm around her waist from behind.

''Let's stop fighting,'' he said. ''I love you.''

Andy turned around and looked at Sam with a serious stare. ''I love you too, but I miss you.''

Sam cupped Andy's cheek and pulled her towards him. He wrapped his arms around her and Andy rested her head on his shoulder. She let out a content sigh and pressed her lips to his chest.

''You know I miss you too right? That I would divide my time different if I would know how?'' Sam had talked to Oliver about their problems, Oliver told him that Zoe and he had gone through different rough patches too. Considering the fact Sam skipped the last five poker nights to work, Oliver thought there might be a reason for Andy's anger. In a way he made Sam see the light.

''I want to believe that,'' Andy said after a pause.

''But you don't?'' Sam's eyes were filled with hurt, Andy could see that, but she wouldn't lie to him.

Andy bit her bottom lip and shrugged. ''I'm not so sure. I don't know what you're thinking anymore. You've always been hard to read, but lately it's like we don't talk about anything else than the kids.''

All of the sudden their moment was interrupted when Lissy stormed in. ''Daddy!'' she screamed before she threw herself on Sam.

''Hey,'' Sam greeted his daughter. He picked her up and placed her on the counter. ''How was school? ''

''Difficult,'' Lissy said with a serious frown.

''You want to hear some good news then?'' Sam asked. When Lissy nodded, Sam placed his hands on the counter on either side of her hips. ''Tomorrow it's Saturday, do you know what that means?''

Lissy shook her head and Sam laughed. ''That means you don't have to go to school. And since daddy doesn't have to work, I thought we'd go to the zoo together.''

''Mommy too?'' Lissy asked with a smile.

''Yeah, mommy too,'' Sam said. ''And how do you feel about a sleepover at aunt Traci and uncle Jerry's house?''

Lissy smiled and her head snapped up. ''Will aunt Traci make my hair look like a princess again?''

The last time Traci had babysat Lissy, she braided her hair in a special way. Lissy refused to take the elastic out and went to bed with the braid. ''I don't know sweetie, but you can always ask.''

''Fun!'' Lissy yelled out. Sam lowered her to the floor again and when Lissy left the kitchen, he turned to Andy.

''I took the day off,'' he admitted.

''So I've heard,'' Andy said with a small smile. ''Thanks.''

''You shouldn't have to thank me when I spend time with my family.'' Sam shook his head. ''I probably won't be perfect from now on, but I promise I'll try.''

''I'll try to complain less.''

''Don't, if you're unhappy, you should let me know. I'm just sorry I didn't listen to you before.''

''It's not that I'm unhappy. I love you so much and I love our life together,'' Andy protested. ''Lately I've just been worried about it all.''

''I know, we'll make it work,'' Sam promised. ''You, Lissy and Noah are my life. Nothing else matters.''

''Your job matters Sam and it's not all your fault. I haven't been in the best mood lately and I've been taking it out on you. I'm sorry.'' Andy wrapped her arms around Sam one more time and kissed him quickly.

''I'm sorry too,'' Sam said once again. ''So tomorrow it's family day. First we'll take the kids to the zoo and then we'll have the evening together. I already called Nash and she agreed to take the kids for the night.'' When Sam noticed Andy was about to protest, he kissed her again. ''I want to spent some alone time with my wife and you could use a good night of sleep.''

When Andy noticed protesting was useless, she nodded and closed her eyes again. ''You are the best,'' Andy said.

''That's not what you said this morning,'' Sam teased. When he noticed Andy didn't appreciate his joke, he kissed her quickly and nudged her nose with his. ''To soon, sorry. Is dinner almost ready?''

''Yeah, I already set the table, so if you'll get the kids, I'll bring it in.''

XX

The next day was a perfect family day. Andy and Sam took turns with pushing Noah's stroller, so they both could spent time with Lissy as well.

When they ate lunch, they sat down at a table and let Lissy play on the playground. From their table they could watch Lissy, but she was too busy to notice her parents watching her.

''She looks happy,'' Sam stated. He looked at the little girl who was running around in her jeans and t-shirt.

''She is.'' Andy looked at Sam and gave him a weak smile. ''So am I,'' she added. ''I've got everything I need right here.''

Sam's lips met Andy in a short and innocent kiss. They stayed at their table for half an hour, when Lissy came running towards them, Andy was there to catch her. ''Hey baby girl, having fun?''

''Yes,'' Lissy said. ''Can we go see the fishy one more time?''

Sam chuckled and nodded. ''Yeah sure.'' Lissy had already spent more than twenty minutes at the aquarium, looking at all the fish completely memorized. She didn't want to leave after twenty minutes, but Andy insisted there were more animals that deserved a little attention, with a promise to come back later that day.

When they reached the aquarium, Andy stayed in the back with Noah. Sam moved to the front with Lissy and crouched down behind his daughter. He pointed at a view fish and asked Lissy what she thought was the prettiest fish.

''The one with pretty colours,'' Lissy answered. ''Can I have a fish?'' she asked Sam. ''Or a dog?''

Sam chuckled again and stood up. ''We'll see sweetie, maybe another time.'' Sam knew this probably wasn't the right time to take in pets. A fish wouldn't be that much of a problem, but anything that required more attention was not an option.

When Lissy was completely satisfied and worn out, the family walked back to the car. Lissy was carried by Sam, because she was simply too tired to walk all the way back. Noah was in his stroller with Andy behind it.

''So, you had fun Lis?'' Andy asked her daughter.

''Super fun!'' Lissy screamed.

''And what was the best part about today?'' Sam joined in on the conversation.

Lissy thought about it for a moment and came with a surprising answer. ''The playground,'' she answered.

Sam and Andy both started laughing and Sam kissed Lissy's temple. ''Glad you had fun, but if the playground was the best thing, next time I'll take you to the one that's just around our corner.''

''I had fun looking at the fish too!'' Lissy protested. ''And the bears, but I didn't like the snakes. I don't want a snake.''

''Don't worry Lissy, we won't buy you a snake,'' Andy said smiling.

''Good,'' Lissy responded with a serious look on her face.

XX

''Where are we going?'' Andy asked when Sam took a wrong turn. ''You were supposed to go left here.''

''You're right McNally, if I wanted to go to our house, I should have gone to the left.''

''We're not going home?'' Andy was surprised. Normally she would figure out Sam's surprises long before she received them. This time she had absolutely no idea. ''Where are we going?''

''Wait and see.'' Sam didn't want to give away anything. He knew he screwed up a lot lately. Andy hadn't been perfect either, but most of it was to blame on him, he was very much aware of it. ''I've got your bag in the back of the truck. Called Nash to ask what you girls need when you go away for the night, so you're probably all set.''

''You know you didn't have to do this right? I would have been perfectly happy spending a night at home with you.'' Andy loved Sam for his troubles, but she really would have been content to spent the night at their own place.

''No, because there you would see a pile of laundry, a dishwasher that needs to be unloaded, a living room that needs to be vacuumed and toys lying all across the room. So tonight we are going away and we are going to relax.''

Andy smiled and squeezed Sam's hand. ''Love you,'' she said again.

When they reached a beautiful hotel, Andy smiled up at Sam. He went to the reception to get the room key and came back to get their bags. When they reached the room, Andy didn't waste a moment and immediately crashed their mouths together.

Sam happily responded by deepening the kiss, but broke the kiss after a few moments. He walked to the mini bar and grabbed two drinks for them. Andy didn't drink alcohol because she was still nursing Noah. Some books said it could do no harm if you would drink, but Andy didn't like the idea of getting alcohol into her body if her son was drinking out of her body.

That night was all about them. They didn't talk about Sam's work and he even switched his cell phone off. Andy's stayed on in case anything was wrong with the kids.

''You're so beautiful,'' Sam praised Andy when they were both sitting on the bed. Sam had a towel around his waist and Andy had a robe on. They had taken a long and relaxing bath together, Sam normally wasn't one for sitting down and relaxing, but if it made Andy happy, it made him happy too.

''Not really,'' Andy protested. ''it's so much harder to get back in shape than it was with Lissy. With Lissy I fitted back in my own jeans after two weeks. Noah is five months and I still have to squeeze myself into them.''

''You're beautiful,'' Sam repeated. ''I don't even see that you've gained weight.''

''Well, it's there,'' Andy said with a smile. ''Can't really complain though, we've got a beautiful son in return.''

''Can't really complain either way,'' Sam muttered while he unfastened the belt that held Andy's robe together. ''You're softer now.'' Sam placed a kiss on Andy's lips and moved over to her throat.

While he was nibbling on her skin, Andy closed her eyes and let out a small moan. She missed this, she missed him. Andy wrapped one leg around Sam's waist and pulled him towards her. She moved over to lie in the middle of the bed and pulled Sam on top of her. ''You're hot,'' she told him. ''Like ridiculously hot.''

Sam returned his lips to Andy's and she returned the kiss with just as much passion as he was giving. After a while the need for air became too big, so they broke apart. Sam attached his mouth to Andy's neck and she ran her hands over his back.

With a quick motion, she got rid of the towel that was around his waist. She moved up a little so she could get rid of her robe completely. Sam hovered over her, just looking.

''What's wrong?'' Andy asked him.

Sam grinned and kissed her again. ''Nothing, just enjoying the view.''

XX

The next morning Andy woke with a smile on her face. Sam was lying beside her on his stomach, snoring lightly. Andy let her hand roam over his back, she loved how strong the muscles in his back and arms were. Whenever she was in his arms, she would feel absolutely safe.

She knew he would move heaven and earth to keep her safe. Her and the kids. No matter what they said to each other or how much hurt they could cost each other every now and then, there was never a doubt in her mind that he loved the kids just as much as she did.

In a way it was admirable. Not many guys would have jumped at the chance to be with her. She always had been afraid that Lissy would be a deal breaker for a relationship. If that was the case, than that would be okay, from the moment Lissy was born, Andy knew she would never let anybody come between her and her daughter.

With Sam that had never been an issue. He understood that Lissy came first, he understood that she couldn't go out a lot. It felt like they had already spent a lifetime together, but truth was that they only had been together for three years.

Andy couldn't even imagine him not being there. Some moments she could easily forget about Mark, about the way he refused to play a part in Lissy's life.

Sam had accepted Lissy completely. He didn't treat her any different than he would treat Noah, Andy knew that for sure. That only made her love him more than she thought she could. Well, maybe he would be a little bit more overprotective over his little girl.

''What are you thinking about?'' Sam muttered. He always seemed to know when she was up already. Even with his eyes closed he could tell her every move, years of undercover work do that to a person.

''Will you be stricter with Lissy than with Noah?'' Andy asked him carefully.

Sam turned so he could face her. ''What? Where is this coming from?''

Andy saw hurt in his eyes and realised the question probably came out wrong. ''I mean because she's a girl,'' she quickly added. ''Will you be more overprotective over her than over Noah?''

''All my kids deserve my protection,'' Sam simply replied.

''So, when some nervous pimpled sixteen year old will come by the house to pick up Lissy for a date?'' Andy laughed.

''I'll gently inform him I own a gun and know how to use it.''

''And when Noah brings home a girl at the age of sixteen?'' Andy tried.

''Well, that's inevitable.'' Sam grinned at Andy and kissed her gently. ''Swarek genes Andy, girls will be all over him.''

''There'd better not be any girls all over you,'' Andy teased.

''Only one girl I'm interested in,'' Sam replied while he moved up.

Andy kissed him again and sighed. Sam laid down again and closed his eyes for another moment. Andy kept her hand on his back and smiled.

They would be okay, she was sure of it.

XX

_Did Sam fix his mistake? Is Andy being too difficult?_

_Will they really be okay?_

_Only time will tell.. _


	3. Chapter 3

_Here's another chapter.  
I hope you guys won't hate the drama too much..._

_XX_

Two months later Andy laid in bed and rolled over. She opened one eye to check the alarm clock. It was a quarter past three and there still was no sign of Sam. The last four nights he hadn't been home before two AM, but he had never been this late. Andy grabbed her phone of the nightstand and checked for messages or texts, but there was nothing. She tried calling Sam, but he didn't answer his phone. Lately, she was shocked when he did answer.

After their family day, things really seemed to get better. That was until Sam was assigned to another big case. Between the cases he was already working on, he barely had time to spend with his family. Since two weeks, Lissy didn't even ask if her father was coming home anymore. Andy was worried about her daughter, she noticed the tension between her parents. Lissy was more quiet than she ever was, Andy made sure she spend more time with her daughter alone lately.

She had even called Frank and told him to not hold the detective spot for her. Right now she wasn't even sure she could go back to work like this, her kids needed her more than ever. Things would be hard even if Sam was invested, now that he was not, going back to work would be impossible.

Every time she and Sam had an argument about his schedule, it ended in him apologising and promising things would get better. Most of the time it would get better for a week or two, but things went back to normal every time. The last three arguments they had, Sam hadn't even promised things would get better. He thought she was over reacting, it was because of him that they could afford for her to stay at home. When she told him she didn't want to stay at home forever, things didn't get much better. Eventually they tabled the argument, but their relationship was far from okay.

Andy closed her eyes when she heard Noah crying. She threw the covers off herself and walked over to her sons nursery. ''Hey, little man,'' she whispered when she switched on a small light. Andy placed one hand under his hips and one hand under his neck. She gently pulled her son out of his crib and nestled him against her chest. ''Sssh, it's okay.''

After walking out of the nursery, Andy walked downstairs and fixed a bottle for Noah. She had stopped breastfeeding him, so now he got formula. Noah had been unwell for a few days now, Andy had made an appointment with the doctor for the next day. Because he wasn't so well, Noah's schedule had been way off. ''Sucks that I can't help you sweetie,'' Andy said while nuzzling her sons neck.

After Noah was fed, Andy changed his diaper and put him back in his crib. She checked on Lissy, but her daughter was fast asleep. A small smile formed on Andy's lip as she watched the slow rise and fall of her daughters chest. She had a stuffed animal clutched under her arm and had a serious frown on her face. After a few minutes of just looking, Andy switched off the light in the hallway and crawled into bed again. It was four by now and she was seriously starting to worry.

She didn't want to come off as an overbearing and untrusting wife, but this weren't normal hours. She was just wondering how mad Sam would be if she called one of his colleagues, when she heard someone enter the house. Andy sighed and crawled back under the covers. She really wasn't in the mood to face Sam, so she closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep.

Ten minutes later, Sam entered the bedroom and undressed. He got into bed next to Andy and pressed his lips to her neck. ''Hey,'' he murmured. ''You awake?''

Andy was irritated to find out he smelt like alcohol. At least when he was late because he was working on a case, she knew he was doing something good. Not being there for her or their kids because he was drinking, that reminded her of her dad.

Sam pushed away the hairs that were on the side of her neck. He placed open mouth kisses on her skin, while Andy's anger continued to built. She pushed her elbow between his ribs, not hard enough to hurt him, but hard enough to get him to back off.

''What's wrong?'' Sam asked.

Andy moved over to her stomach and placed the comforter back over herself. ''It's four AM, I'm sleeping.''

''You were not sleeping, I can tell when you are faking it.'' Sam let out a laugh and placed his hand on Andy's back. His hand moved up, he took the material of her tank top with him.

''Stop it Sam,'' Andy said. ''Where the hell have you been all night?''

''Come on, not this again.'' Sam pushed himself up and ran a hand across his face. ''You know I've been working hard lately.''

''Yeah,'' Andy replied with a harsh tone. ''Haven't seen you all week, so I kind of figured you might be working. Now if you don't mind, I'm going back to sleep, because in less than three hours, there will be two kids that need my attention.''

Sam was silent for about ten seconds before he spoke up again, ''I'm kind of getting sick of this. Lately I can do nothing right. All I do, is work for this family and all you do is bitch about it.''

''Bitch about it?'' Andy sat up too and widened her eyes. She couldn't believe Sam actually said that to her. He never used to talk to her in that way, but now all they seemed to do was fight. ''You think it's so unreasonable that I want my husband at home every now and then? Is it so absurd that I want my kids to see their father? You haven't been home for a single night this week, last week you've only been at home once.''

''Yeah, and for what?'' Sam shot back. ''I'm working this hard, so I can put a roof above your heads. We can put aside money for the kids, put them through college and provide for them.''

Andy closed her eyes and let out a sarcastic laugh. ''Lissy is four and Noah is eight months old, I highly doubt they care about college. What they do care about is seeing their dad every now and then.''

''I see them every day,'' Sam argued. ''They see me every day and I help them every single day. Name one big moment that I've missed.''

In a way he was right, all though he hadn't been there a lot lately, he never missed any significant moments. He was there for Lissy's first day of school, first gym class and he had been there for Noah's big moments too. ''It's not about the big moments,'' Andy settled for. ''It's about the small moments too.''

''I didn't hear you complaining when I bought you that new car,'' Sam accused. ''Who paid for that car?''

''Sorry?'' Andy asked. ''I told you a million times that I didn't care about a new car, you insisted on buying it.''

''That old thing was a danger,'' Sam said. ''I didn't want you and the kids driving around in that piece of junk, so I made sure you guys were safe.''

Andy shook her head and laid back down. This wasn't going anywhere and she really needed to get some sleep. ''Okay Sam, whatever you say.''

''Yeah, go sleep, avoid this.'' Sam grabbed a pillow and readjusted it on the bed. He laid down on his back and stared up at the ceiling. He glanced over at Andy after a while and closed his eyes. He had no idea how they got to this point. All he did was for his family, they didn't have to worry about money for a moment. Andy could stay at home and take care of the kids, he didn't understand why she didn't see that. ''I want you to be happy,'' he pleaded with her, one last try to fix this thing between them tonight.

''I'm not happy,'' Andy admitted. ''I'm worried. And if you can't see that things between us have been bad lately, then we have an even bigger problem than we already have.''

Sam moved over to his side and placed a hand on Andy's arm. ''I don't see why it should be a problem, we can have everything you ever wanted.''

''Again with the money,'' Andy said. ''I don't care about money, I care about our kids. I care about us. And you aren't working all the time, you have been to the penny, haven't you?''

''I am doing all of this for you,'' Sam tried one more time. ''And we got home one of our officers tonight after a seven month UC, I can't go out with a few colleagues to celebrate?''

Andy blinked a few times, wishing away the tears that were threatening to fall. ''Let's just go to sleep, it's late.''

XX

When her alarm clock went off, Andy felt like she fell asleep five minutes before. Truth was, she probably did. Andy groaned and when she turned around, she noticed Sam was already out of bed. She heard the shower and stared up at the ceiling for a few minutes.

When Sam moved into the bedroom, he didn't acknowledge the fact that she was awake. Andy looked at her husband moving around the bedroom. ''I have to take Noah to the doctor today, remember?'' she asked.

''Yup,'' Sam replied, not saying anything else.

''Lissy knows you'll be picking her up.'' Andy threw the covers off the bed and sat up. ''I'll go get the kids ready for the day.''

''Okay.''

As usual, Sam did help with the morning routine. He was absent and moody, that made Andy suspect he probably drank more than he led on yesterday. Without saying anything, she handed him a few painkillers and a glass of water. He didn't say anything, but took the pills and the glass of water.

When the kids were dressed, Sam checked his watch. ''I'm going to lay down for a few more hours, they won't expect me till noon.'' After that he kissed Noah on his forehead and wrapped Lissy up in a hug. ''Have fun at school sweetheart.''

XX

Andy hated going to the doctor. Even though she made an appointment two days before, the doctor didn't see her and Noah until 40 minutes after the scheduled time. When the name Swarek was finally announced, Andy stood up with Noah and walked towards the little office.

''What can I help you with?'' the doctor asked.

Andy shifted Noah in her arms and rocked him a little. ''Noah has been a little sick for a while. His temperature is high, not shockingly high, but still. And he's been crying a lot, which is very unlike him. Also he's got a running nose and his breathing is shocking a little every now and then.''

''How long has he had this?'' the doctor asked while typing away on her computer.

''About a week,'' Andy replied. ''He normally is a very happy baby, this is not like him.''

''Let's take a look at him,'' the doctor said.

After a few tests, the doctor decided that Noah wasn't seriously ill. His airways didn't sound too good though, so she did prescribe him some antibiotics to help him get better. Andy wasn't too happy her little men needed medicine like that, but the doctor reassured her it would be for Noah's benefit.

When they left the doctor's office, Andy pulled out her phone from her jacket. She had turned off the sound of her phone when she took place in the waiting room, nothing more annoying than a phone going off all the time. When he saw she had five missed calls from Lissy's school, her heart skipped a beat.

Andy quickly sat down with Noah on her lap. She placed the phone by her ear while she called Sam, but he didn't pick up. After trying Sam's number, Andy tried the school's number. School was already out, but all the teachers were probably still there.

When somebody answered, Andy explained that she had a few missed calls from school, she told the person on the other end of the line in what class Lissy was. After a minute Lissy's teacher came on the phone.

''_Mrs. Swarek_,'' miss Katie began. ''Lissy _said her father would pick her up, but he hasn't shown_.''

''What?'' Andy asked. ''Where is Lissy?'' Andy was internally panicking. The things you saw on the news from time to time were bad enough, the fact that she was a cop didn't make things much better. Child abductions happened, that was just cruel reality.

''_Don't worry, she's with me. I tried to call both you and your husband multiple times, but neither of you answered.'' _

''I was at the doctors with my son, I don't know where my husband is. I'm so sorry,'' Andy apologised. ''I'll be there within fifteen minutes.''

Andy quickly drove over to Lissy's school. All the doors were locked, so she had to knock on one of the windows before miss Katie came to get her. With Noah on her hip, she quickly walked into the school.

When she saw her daughter, Andy's heart broke. It was obvious that Lissy had been crying, but she was trying to be brave now. She was standing in the hallway, the backpack on her back making her look smaller than ever.

''Hey sweetheart, mommy's so sorry.'' Andy crouched down with Noah as best as she could. She gave Lissy a hug and kissed her cheek. ''Let's go home, alright? We'll do something fun.''

''Why don't you go and pick out a sticker?'' Katie asked Lissy. ''They are on my desk, you can pick one because you were so brave.'' Lissy nodded and sniffed. She walked to the classroom and Andy wanted to follow. ''Mrs. Swarek?'' Katie asked. ''I know that your husband has a busy job, but I hope this won't happen again.''

''It won't,'' Andy promised, feeling embarrassed. ''Believe me, it won't,'' she said a little more firm. ''God, you must think we're horrible parents.''

''No,'' Katie quickly said. ''I understand there can be misunderstandings or miscommunication, I just hope Lissy won't be affected by that.''

''I know,'' Andy replied. ''I'll talk to her.''

When Lissy walked back out of the classroom, she had a page with stickers in her hand. ''I can't get it off,'' she whispered to her teacher.

''Let me help you with that,'' Katie said. ''Which one do you want?''

Lissy pointed to a sticker and waited until Katie removed it. She placed it on Lissy's hand and gave Lissy a smile. ''You were a really big girl today Lissy, now go home with mommy and I'll see you tomorrow.''

Lissy nodded and took her mother's hand. ''Bye,'' she told her teacher.

Andy squeezed Lissy's hand and walked her back to her car. Andy was completely lost for words, she didn't have any comforting words for her daughter. ''I'm really sorry sweetie,'' Andy tried.

''Daddy forgot me,'' Lissy said while her bottom lip trembled. ''You said he would come.''

''I know.'' Andy crouched down in front of Lissy and pulled her body towards hers. ''I know sweetie, I'm so sorry.'' Andy stayed like that for a few moments, her one arm around Lissy while her other held Noah up. ''Come on,'' she said after a while. ''Let's go home and we'll do whatever you want.''

When they reached the house, Andy tried calling Sam a few more times, but he didn't pick up. She couldn't believe he had actually forgot to pick up Lissy. He had done a lot of stupid things over the last few months, but this was by far the worst. This was actually unforgiving.

Lissy was clearly very upset about what happened. Andy could imagine how the little girl felt, seeing all her classmates leave with their parents while no one showed up for her. They curled up on the couch together and watched a movie. Andy stroked Lissy's hair and watched her daughter more than she watched the movie.

Thirty minutes after they got home, Sam rushed in. ''Thank God,'' he sighed out when he saw his wife and daughter in his living room. ''I called you six times.''

''Not now,'' Andy breathed out. ''I am so pissed right now Sam,'' Andy lowered her voice, so Lissy wouldn't hear. ''We are not going to discuss this with Lissy here.''

''You should have reminded me,'' Sam tried. ''You know how busy I've been.''

Andy was ready to start yelling, but Lissy's voice interrupted her. ''You forgot to pick me up from school.'' Lissy's voice was still fragile and broken.

''I'm so sorry Lis,'' Sam said while walking over to the couch. ''Daddy was very stupid.'' Sam sat down next to his daughter and pulled her towards him. Lissy climbed in his lap and placed her head on his chest.

''You didn't forget me?'' she asked, wanting to get a little reassurance.

''I could never forget you sweetheart. I'm so sorry, daddy really messed up.'' Sam stroked Lissy's back and pressed a kiss to her hair. ''I'm mad at myself too.''

''Why did you forget?'' Lissy asked, her voice still shaking a little.

''Daddy was stupid.'' Sam decided not to get into details with a four year old girl. ''Daddy was very, very stupid, okay? Are you okay?''

Lissy nodded and put on her brave face again. ''I stayed with miss Katie and then mommy came to get me. I got a sticker because I only cried a little.''

Sam closed his eyes and cursed himself. When he checked his phone and saw all the missed calls, he realised he was suppose to pick up Lissy. Andy had told him two days before, but he was tired, hung over and more busy than ever. It wasn't an excuse, he knew that. Nothing would ever make up for this screw up. He first drove down to the school, but he was informed somebody already picked up his daughter. ''You are the bravest girl ever,'' he agreed. ''Just like your mom.''

Andy was standing in the doorway, watching her husband interact with Lissy. He looked shaken up, she had to give him that. Still, she couldn't keep doing this.

Sam stayed home after that. He watched the rest of the movie with Lissy in his lap. Andy cleaned around the house, trying to push away her anger, at least till the kids were in bed.

When Noah started crying, Sam turned his attention to Andy. He cleared his throat, obviously not sure how to approach her. ''What did the doctor say about him?''

''He got some antibiotics,'' Andy shortly informed. ''Airways, nothing too serious.''

''Okay, good.''

After that they hardly spoke together. Sam gave Lissy all his attention and Lissy seemed to be doing okay by the time it was her bedtime. Sam changed her into her pyjamas and read her two stories. He stayed with her until she dozed off.

He dreaded going downstairs, because he knew there was no way to win this upcoming argument. No matter what Andy would say to him, he would deserve it. There probably wasn't anyway she could be more pissed at him than he was at himself.

When he reached the living room, Andy wasn't there. Over the baby monitor, he could hear her talking to Noah. Sam waited on the couch, he didn't turn on the TV, but just waited in silence.

By the time Andy joined him, Sam was pacing the floor. ''I'm so sorry,'' he told her. ''I know there isn't an excuse in the world that could justify this.''

''There isn't,'' Andy agreed calmly. She picked up a few toys and threw them in Noah's playpen. ''And then you say that I should have reminded you? I asked you two days ago if you would be able to pick her up, you said yes...''

''I kno..'' Sam started.

Andy raised her hand to silence Sam. ''Let me finish,'' she said. ''I asked you two days ago, I told you again this morning, but you were probably too busy ignoring me to notice.'' Andy put her hair in a messy bun on the top of her head and shook her head. ''You were hung over, so you forgot to pick up our daughter.''

''It wasn't like that,'' Sam tried to defend himself, all though he knew it was useless.

''What was it like then? What was so important that makes it okay for you to forget the fact that you had a four year old waiting for you.''

''Nothing,'' Sam explained. ''Nothing is so important as our family, you know that.''

''I don't,'' Andy disagreed. She paused for a moment to take a few deep breaths. ''I used to know that, but I don't anymore. The man I fell for, the man I married, he would never forget something this important.''

''I'm sorry,'' Sam repeated. ''I'll take a week off, I'll make it up to you.''

''It's not about me,'' Andy shrugged her shoulders and let a tear fall. ''It's about that little girl that looks up to you and loves you. And we can't keep doing this to her.''

''Can't keep doing what?'' Sam asked, his mouth dry.

''Something has to change Sam,'' Andy said. ''And I don't mean take the week off, because that won't fix anything.''

Sam swallowed and took a step towards Andy. ''What do you want me to do, you know I can't quit my job.''

After taking a step back, Andy looked Sam in the eye. ''I still love you, I do. I will probably always love you because of the kids, but you're not the same anymore.''

''What are you saying?'' Sam asked. ''You want to get a divorce?'' Sam raised his voice, he knew he messed up, but they should fight for them, for their family.

Andy closed her eyes and let her tears fall freely. ''No,'' she tried to keep her voice calm, but was mostly failing. Andy sat down on the couch and put her head in her hands. ''I don't know what I want, maybe we should take some time apart'' they were both silent again. ''I want what's best for the kids.''

''What's best for the kids, is a mother and a father who live in the same house.'' Sam clenched his teeth and made fists with his hands. ''What's best for the kids, are two parents that love each other. They need stability and we can give them that.''

''We haven't been stable in a long time, Sam.'' Andy shook her head and whipped away her tears. ''All we do is fight, then we make up and things are better for a week. Only to have things go south again.''

''And that is all my fault?'' Sam asked. ''I know I haven't been perfect, but you've been on my case about every little thing I ever did wrong.''

''This isn't about us,'' Andy said. Sam was raising his voice, but she tried to keep calm. ''It's about the kids, this is affecting them now. Maybe we should just take a step back. I don't want to get a divorce, I don't. But maybe we should figure out where to go from here.''

''We are married Andy, you don't take a step back in marriage.'' Sam threw his hands in the air and took a step back again. ''You want to leave me, don't try to use the kids to cover that up.''

Andy let out a sob and shook her head. ''You really don't understand me, do you?''

''No,'' Sam agreed. ''I realise that what happened today is unforgivable, but...''

''Mommy?'' a soft voice interrupted Sam. Sam turned around and saw Lissy standing in the doorway. Her cheeks were wet with tears and she was still crying.

Andy quickly whipped away her own tears and took a few deep breaths to keep her breathing under control. ''Lissy, what are you doing awake?'' Andy gently asked. ''You should be asleep sweetie.''

Andy stood up and walked towards her daughter. ''I wet my bed,'' Lissy sobbed. ''I'm sorry.''

Sam joined Andy and Lissy and quickly scooped up Lissy in his arms. ''It's okay sweetheart, accidents happen,'' Sam reassured. ''We'll clean your bed, okay? Let's get you into the shower to get cleaned up too.''

''I tried to clean it up, but I let everything fall,'' Lissy was still sobbing.

''It's okay,'' Andy said. ''Come on, let's shower first.''

When they reached Lissy's bedroom, there were clothes all over the floor. ''What did you try to do sweetheart?'' Sam asked. When Lissy hid her face in Andy's neck, Sam put a hand on her back. ''I'm not mad sweetheart, just tell me what happened.''

''I heard you yelling at mommy,'' Lissy said, her face still pressed tight against Andy. ''And I had to go to the bathroom, but I was too late. I tried to change my bed, but I'm too small and then everything fell.''

For the second time that day, Sam hated himself. He pressed his lips against Lissy's head and put one arm around her. ''You go shower her and I'll clean up,'' Sam told Andy. He could use a little time alone.

Andy carried Lissy towards the bathroom and put her under the shower. She washed her daughter and turned off the shower. When she was done, Sam walked in and gave her clean clothes for Lissy.

Sam had thrown all the covers into the washing machine. Thankfully they had a mattress protector, just in case accidents happened. Apparently Lissy had tried to get new bedcovers from the closet, she had pushed a chair towards the closet, but was too small to reach the covers. Her bedroom floor was covert in clothes, Sam picked them up one by one and placed them back in the closet.

When Lissy was in a clean pyjama, Andy put down Lissy again, while Sam stood in the doorway. ''Are you ready to go back to sleep?'' Andy asked? She could tell that Lissy was exhausted, that wasn't so surprising with the day she had.

''Why was daddy mad at you?'' Lissy asked.

At that Sam decided to step in. ''I'm not mad Lissy,'' he promised.

Lissy looked at him with her big brown eyes and Sam sat down on her bed. Andy was sitting on the other side of Lissy and they were both holding one of her hands. ''You were yelling.''

''Sometimes grownups fight, that doesn't mean they don't love each other very much.'' Sam tried to explain as best as he could, but the truth was that he barely recognised what was happening here.

''Do you love mommy?'' Lissy asked.

''I love your mother, you and Noah more than anything, okay? I know daddy did a lot of stupid things today, but he will make it up to you, promise.'' Sam leaned forwards and kissed Lissy's forehead. ''You are the most important thing to me in the world.''

''Do you love daddy?'' Lissy asked, suddenly turned to Andy.

Andy was a little taken aback, but quickly recovered. ''Of course,'' she quickly said. ''You know that daddy and I love each other so much.''

''You should make up then,'' Lissy advised. ''It's no fun to yell.''

Andy let out a sad laugh and realised kindergarten probably involved some social skills training. ''I know sweetheart, we'll stop.''

''And you need to go to sleep,'' Sam instructed. ''We love you very much, don't forget that.''

''I love you too, and Noah,'' Lissy said.

Both Sam and Andy kissed Lissy and stood up. Andy was the last to leave the room and gave Lissy a small air kiss before flicking out the light.

As soon as they reached the bottom of the stairs, Sam turned around and put his hand around Andy's waist. ''Don't leave?'' he asked.

''Sam,'' Andy said. ''We need to do something.''

''You saw that girl upstairs, do you really think it will do her any good if we mess this up?'' Sam made sure he kept his voice calm. He was more whispering than talking out loud. He grabbed Andy's hand and leaded her towards the living room. ''One more chance, all I'm asking.''

''What will change?'' Andy asked. ''Because we've been here before, more than once. Maybe not this bad, but this isn't the first time things went wrong between us.''

''I don't care,'' Sam said. ''Just tell me what to do, I'll do it.''

''Why?'' Andy asked back. ''What changed?''

''Lissy was scared of me today, that's what changed. Because of me, that girl had one of the worst days of her life.''

Andy could see that Sam was incredibly hurt by everything that happened today, for the first time in a long time, she sincerely believed that he was affected by everything that happened between them.

''Sam, she's four, she won't even remember this.''

''Maybe not,'' Sam replied. ''But there is no excuse for everything that happened. I should have been home more, I didn't even notice my own daughter was turning away from me.''

''She's not turning away from you,'' Andy tried again. ''She's just hurt by today, but she'll get over it. Just spent more time with her and let her know you love her.''

''You know I love her,'' Sam argued.

''I never said anything that would suggest otherwise,'' Andy defended herself. ''But things have been tensed around here and Lissy feels that too. We should really change something Sam, or else this will affect her in the long haul.''

Sam nodded and pinched the bridge of his nose. ''I'll take a week off, talk to my boss about working fewer hours.''

''Are you really going to do that?'' Andy asked. When Sam raised an eyebrow she continued. ''I know you probably think I'm bitching to you again, but lately you've made a lot of promises you didn't keep.''

''I shouldn't have talked to you that way,'' Sam said. ''I'm sorry for that too. I'm sorry for a lot of things actually. I'm sorry that it took Lissy to make me see that I'm turning into a nightmare of a father and husband.''

Andy hated that he was putting all the blame on himself. ''I haven't been perfect either. I know I complain a lot lately.'' Both of them stayed silent and over thought everything that had happened between them in the last few months. ''Do you think we can fix it? Us?'' Andy carefully asked Sam.

''We can,'' Sam promised. ''I love you so much and I will do everything I can to keep our family together.''

''We'll fight for it.''

XX

Things stayed tense the entire night. Sam called a white shirt and informed him that he wouldn't be able to work the next week. His boss wasn't happy, Andy could see that by the way Sam reacted. Sam followed through though and told his boss he had a family emergency.

Sam and Andy tried to talk about where to go from here, but didn't come to any conclusions. When things threatened to turn into another argument, Andy told Sam she was going to bed. Sam didn't follow and stayed on the couch, his wife probably wanted a little space.

Lissy woke up several times during the night, after the second time, Andy decided to let Lissy sleep with her. When Andy woke up the next day, it was late, too late. Lissy wasn't in bed anymore and she quickly walked towards Noah's nursery, but found it empty. When she walked downstairs she saw Lissy sitting at the breakfast table. She was dressed and was eating a pancake. Noah was in his highchair and was fussing a little.

''Mommy,'' Lissy yelled and ran towards Andy. ''I slept in the big bed tonight with you, right?''

''Yeah, but that was only for one night,'' Andy warned. ''It was a lot of fun, but tonight you're going back to your own room.'' When Lissy pouted, Andy chuckled and gave her daughter a kiss. ''Go finish breakfast.''

Andy kissed the top of Noah's head while she past her son and walked towards the stove. ''You should have woke me up, Lissy will be late,'' Andy said. When Sam turned to face her she shrugged. ''But it was nice to sleep in a little, so thanks.''

''I called Lissy's teacher,'' Sam admitted. ''She was up a big part of the night, I explained it and she agreed that Lissy probably is better off staying at home today.''

''Okay,'' Andy agreed. Normally she wouldn't approve Lissy missing a day of school, but Sam was right about the fact that Lissy wasn't really well rested. ''I'll give Noah his medicine.''

''He already had it,'' Sam told her. ''I found it in the bag on the counter.''

''Did he make it hard to give it?'' Andy asked. She remembered a time where Lissy got medicine when she was a baby, Lissy didn't like the medicine and it was a fight to get it into her daughter every time.

''No, I think he actually liked it.'' Sam walked past Andy and grabbed something out of one of the cupboards. ''Noah still needs to be fed, do you want me to do it?''

''Sure, I'll go sit with Lissy,'' Andy said. She hated the fact that things were so tensed between them, but right now there wasn't any way to fix that. If last night proved one thing, it's that they should keep their kids far away from their problems.

Sam stayed true to his word and didn't leave for work that day. He did have to make a few phone calls to make sure things were dealt with, but he stayed at home with Andy and the kids.

Later that evening, when the kids were in bed again, Sam cleared his throat. ''I've had some time to think things over.'' When Andy gave him a questioning look, he continued. ''I didn't sleep so much last night, that couch killed my back.''

''You can sleep in our bedroom, I told you I don't mind,'' Andy said.

''It just seemed better like this.'' Sam was silent for a few moments again. ''I don't know how to fix things,'' he admitted. ''I'm trying to make everything work, but the truth is that I have no idea how to fix this.''

''Me neither,'' Andy admitted. Both of them looked at each other and shared a silent conversation. ''How did we get here?'' Andy asked. ''How is it possible that we've changed this much in just six months.''

''I don't know,'' Sam admitted. ''I really don't know.''

''Our first priority should be Lissy and Noah,'' Andy started. ''I don't know how we can fix things and if we can fix things, but they come first. If yesterday showed us anything, than it's that Lissy is being affected by this. I won't let her hurt because of our mistakes.''

''I know,'' Sam agreed. ''She shouldn't be affected by this. That was on me, I was yelling and I shouldn't have.'' When Andy didn't respond, Sam sat down next to her on the couch. ''Just..'' Sam cleared his throat and took Andy's hand. ''Please just forgive me for being such an ass and let me make it up to you.''

''How?'' Andy asked.

''Honestly? Right now, I've got no idea, but I'll do anything.'' Sam had spend the biggest part of the night worrying about everything that happened. He knew he was turning into a bad person, something had to change but he didn't know how to change.

''We'll try,'' Andy promised.

XX

_I know a lot of people probably hate this, but personally I don't think it's unrealistic.  
People can lose sight of what's important when they're busy and caught up in other things. They'll work it out, I promise. _


	4. Chapter 4

_Try to look past the medical stuff, it's probably not how things would really go. But this is fanfiction, so in this world it does go like this._

_XX_

Lissy was sitting at one side of the table, while Sam was sitting on the other. It was the second day of his week at home and things were okay. Nothing was really fixed or even better, but at least the arguing stopped and Andy promised him she'd give him another chance.

They had talked about things, this time they both made an effort to also listen to what the other person had to say.

Andy had told Sam that she understood his need to provide for his family. She got that he wanted them to be financially comfortable, that he wanted to give their kids a childhood unlike his own. Still, she stood by the fact that they didn't need the extra money. Their kids needed their father, no amount of money would ever change that.

Sam understood that Andy wanted him to be at home more. He thought it would be best for the kids if she would stay at home, at least until Noah was in school too. Andy informed him that that might be good for the kids, but it would make her unhappy. An unhappy mother wouldn't be good for the kids either.

Now they settled on a plan. A plan they both needed to make changes for, but they were committed enough to do so.

Sam would change his hours; he would talk to the higher ups about how his schedule was out of control lately. He promised he would make an effort to come home at a reasonable hour and he would stay at home at his free days. The last months he had spent at least a few hours at his office on his free days, that had to change.

Andy would go back to work in two weeks. Noah was already signed up for daycare, so that was taken care of.

Sam glanced over at Lissy who was making something out of play dough with her tongue between her lips. She turned her gaze to Sam and frowned. ''Can you make a heart?''

''What are you making?'' Sam asked as he pushed the newspaper aside. Her moved his chair so he sat straight next to Lissy and smiled at the girl.

''A cupcake and I want a heart on it for mommy.'' Lissy took a bit of pink play dough and pushed it in Sam's direction. ''You can make a heart, right?''

Sam smiled and ruffled his hand through Lissy's hair. After what happened two days ago he was so thankful that Lissy was herself around him. He had been afraid that Lissy would be scared around him. When he had talked to Andy she told him that Lissy would be fine, she was scared and upset but every parent couple fight from time to time. As long as they would let her know they love her like crazy, she would be fine. ''Yeah, I can do that.''

Lissy's focus went back to making a cupcake and when Noah started crying she looked up annoyed. ''You're helping me now daddy,'' Lissy pouted.

''Come on Lis, you know your little brother is sick. I'll be back in a minute.'' Sam pushed the play dough aside and stood up. Noah's antibiotics hadn't worked at all yet, things only seemed to be worse now. Andy went to the station to talk to Frank about her return, but Sam wished she was with him right now. Sam was seriously worried about his son and considering the fact that Andy had more experience with babies, he could use her expertise.

When Sam entered his sons nursery he noticed that Noah had thrown up the little milk he drank earlier. His pyjamas smelt sour and were wet. ''Come on buddy,'' Sam said as he lifted his son out of his crib. ''Let's get you into some clean clothes.''

He walked downstairs again with Noah in his arms. The boy was still softly crying, but it was more like a whine now. Sam bounced him in his arms and held him close to his chest as he tried to calm his son.

''Daddy, my cupcake is almost ready. I only need the heart,'' Lissy informed Sam. ''Will you help me?''

''I'm sorry sweetheart. I need to take care of Noah right now.'' Sam smiled apologetically to his four year old, but she didn't seem to impressed.

''But you promised,'' she muttered under her breath.

Sam sighed and sat down on the chair next to Lissy. ''I know sweetheart, I'm sorry.'' Noah's wails became louder again and Sam rocked him back and forward. Noah angrily pulled his pacifier out of his mouth and threw it on the ground.

Relieve flood through his body when Sam heard a key in the lock. He had only been at home with the kids for a few hours, but it had already taken its toll on him.

Andy immediately walked towards the cries and frowned. ''I wish his medicine would just start working,'' Andy softly said. She kissed her sons forehead and smiled sadly. ''This kills me.''

''I know,'' Sam agreed. ''He threw up again. Not that much, but the antibiotics should start to kick in right now, right?''

''I don't know.'' Andy sighed and sat down too. ''We'll go to the doctor again tomorrow, this isn't normal.''

''Mommy,'' Lissy interrupted the conversation. ''I made a cupcake and it's for you because I love you and you are the best mommy.''

Andy smiled and pulled Lissy onto her lap. ''I am, huh?'' she asked. ''Well that's maybe because I've got the best kids in the world, or not?''

''I wanted a heart on top, but daddy didn't help me because Noah cried and now there's no heart on top,'' Lissy sadly said. ''But it is a pink cupcake.''

''You know what?'' Andy said. ''I think I like this better, because now it was made all by you.'' Lissy smiled and Andy kissed her cheek. She pretended to take a bite out of the play dough cupcake and moaned a little. ''Delicious sweetheart,'' Andy praised her daughter.

When Noah let out a loud cry again Andy turned to look at him. ''You know what?'' she asked Lissy. ''Why don't you go and play with your toys, first clean up here.''

Lissy jumped off Andy's lap and started putting the play dough back into the boxes it came in. Andy took Noah from Sam and held her son close. ''Ssh, it's okay little man, we're all here.''

XX

When Lissy was in bed for less than ten minutes, Andy shook her head at Sam. ''I'm taking him to the hospital, I don't care. Somebody has to take a look at him.''

''Yeah,'' Sam agreed. ''This isn't normal Andy, baby's can dehydrate really quickly right?''

''Yes.'' Andy placed Noah on her chest and rubbed his back. ''The antibiotics should be doing something, but things are only getting worse.''

Andy called and she could bring Noah in right away. Sam told her to go with Noah while he waited for Tommy to arrive. Tommy would stay with Lissy for as long as needed, so Noah could have both of his parents with him.

Sam arrived at the hospital thirty minutes after Andy. She was just called out of the waiting room when Sam joined.

A doctor asked them a bunch of questions about Noah and took a good look at the boy. Noah obviously didn't like the attention the doctor was giving him, so he started crying even louder. Sam held him in a tight grip as the doctor listened to his lungs and did some other tests.

A good hour later, they finally knew what was wrong with their little man. ''It looks like Noah is having an allergic reaction to the antibiotics my colleague prescribed,'' the doctor started. ''His allergy is costing the vomiting and the crying because he's just feeling so sick. Because of all of that Noah has lost a lot of fluids, so he's dehydrated.''

''How bad is that and what does that mean?'' Sam asked concerned. Noah was in Andy's arms, but Sam had a arm around his wife and son.

''I want to keep Noah here for at least one night.'' The doctor looked at Sam and Andy. ''If we start up an IV with fluids and start up another form of antibiotics, he should be just fine.''

Both Sam as Andy let out a deep breath. ''Thank you doctor,'' Sam said before he kissed his son's face.

''We'll also give Noah ORS, that will stop his vomiting. A nurse will be here in a minute to bring you into a room where Noah will stay. You are allowed to stay with him throughout the night. If you have any more questions, you can ask a nurse.''

''Thanks again,'' Andy repeated. When they were alone in the room Andy let a tear fall. ''God, they'll put an IV in him, he's so small.''

''It's probably only for a day and it's for his own good,'' Sam tried to reason. Deep down he felt miserable too, baby's didn't belong in a hospital. They belonged in their own crib at their own house.

When the nurse came to put in Noah's IV, Sam told Andy to leave the room. Every time Noah had an vaccination, Andy hated it. She knew it was to protect him from diseases, but she just hated needles being used on her sons tiny body. Sam figured an IV needle would hurt more than the immunization needles, so Andy was probably better off in the hallway.

Andy knew exactly when the nurse put in the needle, because she could hear Noah scream through the door. When the nurses came out a while later and informed her she was all done, Andy quickly walked inside.

Noah was still sobbing softly. Sam was sitting in the chair next to the bed, Noah was on his chest while Sam rubbed soothing patterns on his back. ''He's okay,'' Sam told Andy. ''Nurse said he's probably exhausted and he will fall asleep any minute.''

''Good,'' Andy said with tears in her eye. She knew Noah would be okay. He was in good hands now and while dehydration could be dangerous for baby's, Noah already had all the medicine and fluids to stop it from getting worse.

''Come here,'' Sam said. With his free hand he pulled another chair next to him and motioned for Andy to sit down. When she finally sat he put his arm around her too.

Andy pressed her face to his neck and let out a soft cry. Sam pressed a kiss to her temple and whispered that everything would be okay. He understood that she was crying, before he met her he never understood parents freaking out for every little thing.

Now he did.

If anything ever happened to one of his kids, he would go mad. His kids and Andy were everything to him and today prove to him that he needed to make changes in his life. In a way he was thankful for Andy's tears, it had been a while since she let him hold her like this.

''You want to hold him?'' Sam asked. He thought she could maybe use the comfort of Noah in her arms.

''No,'' Andy replied. ''He's finally calming down in your arms. Shouldn't he be in bed?''

''Nurse said to just let him sleep whatever way we're comfortable with.'' Both of them were silent for a while. When Andy looked up, she looked straight into Sam's eyes. He leaned in and softly pressed his lips to hers. ''He's okay,'' he promised.

''I know,'' Andy answered. ''Thanks for being there for him.'' She looked at Sam and smiled sadly. ''And me.''

''Always.''

XX

An hour later Noah was asleep on Sam's chest. Andy frowned at Sam and shook her head. ''Maybe you should just let him sleep in the crib, you'll go numb like this.''

''I will be okay,'' Sam said.

''You won't sleep for a second like this,'' Andy tried again.

''I can go without sleep, it's fine Andy.'' Sam coughed and let his hand ran over his sons head. ''I like having him close, it's been a while since I had some quiet time with him.''

''I'll go and call my dad,'' Andy said after a few more seconds. ''He's probably worried too.''

Sam looked up. ''Why don't you just go home?'' he asked. ''We can't help him more by both being here. I'll stay tonight and you come after you bring Lissy to school.''

Andy bit her bottom lip and was obviously in doubt.

''It's better for Lissy too,'' Sam tried. ''She loves your dad, but you know she'll be confused if she wakes up with him in the house.'' When Andy didn't answer he offered another solution. ''Or you stay here and I'll go home, but it's better if at least one of us tries to sleep.''

''You'll call me if anything happens?'' Andy asked.

''Of course,'' Sam answered. ''The minute anything changes I'll call you.''

''Okay,'' Andy agreed. ''You're right, it's probably better for Lis this way.''

Andy ran her finger over her sons face and sighed. She pressed her lips to the top of his head and closed her eyes while she inhaled his scent. ''Feel better buddy, daddy will be here the whole time.''

After that she looks into Sam's eyes and leans in to kiss him. The kiss was brief and innocent, yet full of promise.

''I love you,'' Sam told her.

''I know, I love you too.''

XX

_Please review. _


	5. Chapter 5

**Here's the next chapter of There's more: Family Dynamics. I hope you'll enjoy the journey of Sam, Andy, Lissy and Noah.**

**XX**

Andy hardly slept that night, even though she knew Noah was in good hands, she couldn't help but worry. She couldn't stop from thinking about her little boy in that big hospital. At least Sam was with her and would stay with him all night, right now she didn't know what she would do without him.

Andy glanced over at the alarm clock and sighed. She threw the covers off herself and checked her cell phone.

No new messages.

Little feet on the hardwood floor interrupted her thoughts. Andy tied her hair in a messy bun and prepared herself for all of Lissy's questions.

''Mommy,'' Lissy yelled when she ran into the bedroom. ''I'm awake.''

''I can see sweetie,'' Andy said with a small smile.

''Where is daddy? Did he go to work again?'' Lissy asked, already slightly disappointed. Lissy was probably more excited by Sam's week off than anybody else was. Despite everything she was a big daddy's girl.

''No, come sit with me for a moment.'' Andy sat down on the bed and moved so she was leaning against the headboard. Lissy climbed on the bed and settled down next to her. ''You know that Noah has been sick for a while, right?''

''Yeah, he was crying _all _the time,'' Lissy complained. ''Daddy didn't even play with me yesterday and before you didn't either because he wouldn't stop crying.''

Andy ran a hand through her daughter's hair and pressed a kiss to it. ''Sorry sweetie, I know you need a little more attention.'' Andy took another deep breath and threw her arm around Lissy. ''Last night after you went to bed, Noah got sicker. So mommy and daddy took him to the hospital..''

''I was all alone?'' Lissy asked in shock.

The fact that her daughter couldn't listen to a story for more than three sentences in a row didn't surprise Andy. Lissy had definitely inherited her allergy to silence. ''We would never leave you alone, you know that. Grandpa came by and stayed with you until I was home again.''

''He didn't come and say hello to me..'' Lissy said with a frown. ''Next time he should come and give me a kiss, okay?''

Andy really hoped there wouldn't be a next time, but settled for nodding her head. ''Okay. Anyway, we went to the doctor with Noah. The doctor said that Noah was too sick to come home right away, his body can't heal alone and his medicine wasn't working.''

Lissy's eyes widened and her lip started to tremble. ''Is Noah going to die?''

Lissy had just went through her '_what happens when you're dead?' _ phase and Andy had tried to explain that as best as possible. Apparently an aunt of a classmate had died, so Lissy's teacher had told the class something about death. That had raised some questions with Lissy and now she feared that her little brother was sick enough to die too.

''No Lissy,'' Andy promised. ''Noah is in the hospital now and they'll take very good care of him. Daddy is with him so he isn't scared and alone, so Noah will be alright sweetheart. His body just needs a little time to get better and the doctor's in the hospital can help him with that.''

''Can I go and see him?'' Lissy asked. ''I promise I'll be quiet so Noah can sleep, but then I can give him a kiss and I think that Noah will be really happy then.''

''I'm sure he will sweetheart,'' Andy said with tears in her eyes. There wasn't really a reason to cry, but the events of the last few days were catching up with her. Her kids gave her more joy than anything else in the world, but they also terrified her so much. If anything happened to her, she could deal. If anything happened to her kids, there was no point anymore. She honestly didn't know how she would cope if things with Noah were more serious.

''Don't cry mommy,'' Lissy said with tear filled eyes. She crawled closer to Andy and sat down in her lap. Lissy threw her small arms around her mother's neck and pressed a kiss to her neck. ''I love you.''

Andy returned the hug and let out a sobbing chuckle. ''I love you too sweetie. Mommy was just really worried about Noah and I'm so happy that he'll be okay.'' Andy stayed with Lissy for a few more moments. She stroke her back and whispered soothing words in her ear. After a while she kissed Lissy's temple and leaned back. ''You have to go to school Lis.''

''Can't I stay with you?'' Lissy asked. ''I can come with you to Noah or I can help you clean.''

''You're an angel, but you need to go to school,'' Andy warned. ''Mommy needs to go talk to Noah's doctor and daddy will stay with me or come home to sleep.''

''I can be really quiet while daddy sleeps,'' Lissy promised.

After closing her eyes for one more second Andy put on her mom face. ''You need school young lady, when school's out you can come and see Noah too.'' Andy lifted Lissy from her lap and got out of bed. ''Now, go use the bathroom and I'll make us breakfast.

Andy texted Traci, Jerry, Oliver, Chris, Dov and Gail to inform them that Noah was hospitalised. She told them not to worry and explained what was going on. Immediately she started getting messages with a lot of good luck and get better wishes. She was thankful that they didn't start calling her, she loved her friends, but her focus just wasn't on them right now.

While she was eating breakfast her cell phone ringed. Andy hurried towards it and picked up immediately when she saw Sam's number. She walked towards the living room, because she needed to have this conversation without her daughter interrupting every two seconds. ''Hey,'' she said immediately. ''How is he?''

''_Good_,'' Sam promised. '_'He slept through most of the night and I just gave him a bottle of milk._''

''Did he threw up more?'' Andy asked. She was afraid of the dehydration. She knew she was stupid, but when she got home last night she googled it and some stories were not pretty. Of course her son had an entire team of nurses or doctor's, but still.

''_After you left he woke up and threw up again, but nothing since then. Doctor will come in about an hour_.''

''I'll be there,'' Andy said. ''Did you manage to get some sleep?''

''_No,'' _Sam responded. ''_But I'll be fine, just as long as he's alright.''_

''I know,'' Andy agreed. ''Are you with him now?''

''_Yeah, nurse said I could make a quick phone call in here. There's no equipment here that can get messed up because of it. Just as long as I don't spent the entire time on the phone.'' _Sam's voice brought comfort to Andy. He sounded calm, that meant Noah was okay.

''Can you put me on speaker phone for a moment? Or is he asleep right now?'' It was probably stupid, Noah wouldn't understand what she was saying. Still, Andy felt the need to talk to her little man for a moment.

''_Okay, you're on speaker,'' _Sam replied.

''Hey sweetie,'' Andy started. ''Mommy's going to be there really soon, okay? I'm going to bring Lissy to school and then I'll come and see you.''

''_He likes your voice,'' _Sam commented. ''_Made him relaxed.'' _Andy heard Sam talking to Noah for a moment and then he came back on the phone. ''_How's Lissy?''_

''A little confused, but overall okay.'' Andy returned to the kitchen and smiled at the sight of her daughter stuffing her mouth with breakfast. ''You want to talk to her for a second?''

''_Put her on,'' _Sam said.

While Lissy fired off another round of questions to Sam, Andy ate the rest of her own breakfast. She wasn't really hungry, but she was trying to set an example for her daughter.

As soon as Lissy was all ready for her day, Andy took their coats and guided her towards her car. At school Andy spoke to Lissy's teacher to tell her what was going on. Lissy seemed to be doing okay, but if she had any more questions throughout the day, her teacher needed to be prepared.

XX

When she reached Noah's room, Andy immediately lowered the bed rails and took Noah in her arms. ''Hey beautiful boy,'' she greeted him. ''I love you so much.''

Sam stood up from his chair next to the bed and walked towards his wife. When he stood behind her he placed a hand on her back. Andy turned around and lifted her head. Sam lowered his and they met in a sweet kiss. ''Hey,'' Sam murmured against her mouth. ''You okay?''

''Yeah, yeah,'' Andy answered. ''Just worried, you know..''

''Yeah,'' Sam agreed. ''But he's going to be okay. He's our son, so he's a fighter and the doctor said everything will be fine, right?''

Andy nodded and closed her eyes while she took in Noah's scent. ''I know, I would just really love to take this little man home right now.''

''Me too,'' Sam replied.

When Andy turned around she took her first good look at Sam. He looked awful, completely exhausted and it was obvious he had spent an entire night worrying about their son. ''You should go home,'' Andy told him. ''Get some sleep, rest.''

She wasn't even done talking before Sam started shaking his head. ''No, I'll wait until the doctor has taken a look at him.''

Noah rested his head against Andy's chest and talked some gibberish. Andy ran her finger across his forehead and sat down with him. Normally Noah would be active, but today he just let himself fall against Andy. She rubbed his back and kissed his face while she was whispering sweet things in his ear.

Sam stood there looking at his wife and son. He really was exhausted, but he needed to know that Noah would be okay. He needed to know that he could take his family home. ''He's gonna be okay, you know that right?''

Andy looked up and slowly nodded. ''Yeah, I know. He's just not as active as I would like him to be.'' Andy pressed another kiss against Noah's forehead and cupped his face in her hand. ''When I was pregnant with Lissy, I never thought about how much I would worry. If anything would ever happen to either of them...''

''I know,'' Sam agreed. ''I know Andy, but he's going to be fine and we're going to take him home with us and he'll be back to his happy self in no time.'' Sam was comforting himself just as much as he was trying to comfort Andy. Truth was that he was just as worried as she was. Of course now Noah would be okay, but when they didn't know what was wrong with him, he nearly lost it.

He had always been cool and collected. He would always look at things from different perspectives, keep his head in the game. Last night, when the doctor's were working on his crying son, he wasn't that cool and collected anymore. He was worried and nervous.

Sam Swarek was nervous.

That wasn't something that happened very often.

''I just..'' Andy shook her head and looked at Sam. ''I know that I've been hard on you lately, maybe too hard, I don't know. But just thank you for everything you've done for me and for being such a good father to our children. Just the fact that you were with Noah made me somewhat relaxed last night.''

''You haven't been too hard. You were right, I wasn't paying attention to you or the kids lately. I'm sorry it took all of this to make me see this, but you have to know that our family is my life. No matter what happens at work or anywhere else, you guys should always be my first priority.''

''You have been here for all the big things,'' Andy admitted. ''I've been too hard on you. I mean, when you forgot Lissy, I just lost it. I was just worried about everything that could have happened and I don't know..'' Both of them were silent for a moment until Andy's eyes found Sam's. ''I'm sorry,'' she said.

''Me too,'' Sam agreed. ''And I'm just happy that I see my mistakes now and that it's not too late to fix anything yet. We're going to make this work and we will pull through, together.''

Noah let out a sob and Andy started bouncing him a little bit. ''I can't believe it's been just nine months since we took him home from the hospital. I was happier than I ever was before. We lost track of who we are in so little time Sam, what happened to us?''

''We didn't talk anymore,'' Sam concluded. ''We didn't communicate. I assumed you would take care of everything at home and be okay with it, I understand now that it wasn't.''

''We'll talk later,'' Andy said when Noah's cries turned louder.

''We'll be okay Andy, I promise you that.''

Andy gave Sam a weak smile and nodded. Sam took a step forwards and placed a hand on Noah's back. He pulled Andy towards him and gave her a kiss on the top of her head. Both of them tried to comfort Noah and were interrupted when the doctor showed up.

Sam told the doctor how Noah had been during the night. The doctor did some more tests and ordered a nurse to draw some blood from Noah. The doctor had expected Noah to feel a lot better, but the progress wasn't as well as he hoped.

Together they decided that Noah would be better off if he stayed in the hospital for a little longer. The danger of dehydration was still there and Noah wasn't alert enough to ease the doctor's worries.

Sam held Noah while two nurses drew some blood from him. Noah screamed bloody murder, but Sam held him the entire time and cuddled him, whispering soothing words in his ear. As soon as the nurses were gone, Noah started to calm down.

Half an hour later Andy told Sam that he needed to go home and get some sleep.

''I'm fine Andy,'' Sam argued. ''It's fine, I can stay.''

''There's nothing more you can do for him now,'' Andy reasoned. ''I'm here and one of us should probably stay here again tonight. So you might as well go and get some sleep, or else you won't keep up.''

Sam knew Andy was right, but he really hated leaving his sick son. ''Yeah, okay. Call if you need anything, okay?''

Andy nodded. ''Can you pick up Lissy from school or get my dad or Traci to get her?'' Andy asked. ''I promised her she could visit Noah if he was still in the hospital tonight.''

''I'll pick her up,'' Sam promised. ''Probably won't get much sleep anyway, so I'll just bring her by the hospital after school. Anybody else I need to call?''

''I texted everybody except Sarah, figured you wanted to talk to her over the phone. So you should probably give her a call,'' Andy informed him. ''And maybe send a text to the others, but we don't really know anything new..''

''I'll just call Sarah,'' Sam agreed. ''We'll see about the rest later.'' Sam grabbed the keys to the truck and leaned in to kiss Andy goodbye. She met his lips and sighed when their lips were pressed together. With her free hand she kept Sam's face close to hers.

''I really love you,'' she whispered before pressing their lips together again. ''Thanks so much.''

Sam nodded and kissed her one last time. ''Love you too.'' After that he kissed Noah's head and caressed his cheek. ''See you later buddy, feel better and be good to mommy.''

XX

To his surprise Sam actually dozed off for a couple of hours. He was woken by the alarm clock when it was time to pick up Lissy. He grabbed a quick shower, brushed his teeth and drove to the school.

Lissy came running towards him when she saw him standing there. ''Daddy,'' she yelled. ''You came to pick me up!''

Sam smiled and picked up Lissy. ''Of course, you're my favorite girl, right?''

Lissy nodded and giggled when Sam tickled her. ''Is Noah home?'' Lissy asked Sam. She took her backpack from her back and started looking for something. She took out a piece of paper and gave it to Sam. ''Miss Katie told me to make him a drawing and I made this,'' she pointed to the paper. ''It's my doll, because Noah always grabs my doll and normally he can't have it, but because he's sick he can play with it a little.''

''That's sweet of you,'' Sam praised. He took Lissy's hand and walked back to the truck. ''Noah still had to stay at the hospital, but we're going to see him right now, okay?''

Lissy chatted Sam's ears off during the ride to the hospital. Before they went into the room, Sam crouched down in front of her. ''Okay Lis, Noah is sick, so we have to be quiet around him, okay. And there will be some wires attached to him that you can't touch. You got that?''

Lissy nodded and repeated Sam. ''I'll be quiet and I won't touch the wires.''

''Good girl.''

As soon as she was in the room, Lissy walked over to the bed where Noah was lying in. Andy had the bedrails on one side of the bed down. The other side was up and Noah was sitting towards the open side. Andy was sitting beside the bed to keep Noah from falling off.

Lissy stood on her toes to look at her brother. ''I love you Noah, be better soon,'' she whispered. After that she turned to Andy and crawled on her lap.

''Hey sweetie, how was school?'' Andy asked. ''Did you have fun?''

''It was really fun and I made a drawing for Noah it's in my backpack. Daddy said that Noah would be really happy with it and I hope he will be too. We also learned a new song so we can learn how to tie our shoelaces. I tried, but it was too hard, but miss Katie said that we would learn it very quickly with the song. Can you learn me how to tie them?''

Andy's head dazzled a little when her daughter was finally done rambling. ''We'll work on that later,'' she promised. Andy turned her head towards Sam who lowered the other bedrails and sat by their son.

''Big bed,'' Lissy said. ''Why is he behind bars?''

Sam chuckled and smiled at Andy. ''It's to keep him from falling out. He has that at home too, you know that, right?''

''His bed at home is way smaller,'' Lissy commented. ''And lower because now I can't even see him.''

''That's so mommy and daddy can hold his hand and the nurses can help him better,'' Andy explained.

''Does that hurt?'' Lissy pointed towards the IV. ''I don't like it.''

Andy nodded and kissed Lissy's head. ''It hurt a little, but daddy held Noah the entire time so he was safe.''

''Did Noah cry?'' Lissy asked.

''Yes,'' Sam answered. ''But he's a big and brave boy so he only cried for a moment. After that he fell asleep.''

''Can I give him a hug and a kiss?'' Lissy asked. ''Maybe that will help him feel better too.''

''Sure,'' Sam agreed. He stood up and lifted Lissy from Andy's lap. ''Remember you have to be careful.'' Lissy nodded and pressed her lips to Noah's nose as soon as Sam lowered her to the bed.

After she was done Sam lowered her to the floor again and Andy told Lissy to grab her drawing. Andy hung it up on the wall and told Lissy she did a good job. Ten minutes later Traci peeked into the hospital room. She just got out of work and wanted to know if she could do anything for her friends.

''Hey,'' Traci started. ''How are you guys?''

Andy smiled faintly and nodded. ''Yeah, fine I guess.'' Lissy was already a little grumpy because there was very little to do in the room. ''Sam?'' Andy asked. ''What about if I take Lissy downstairs for a moment? We can have a drink and she can get rid of some energy.''

Sam nodded and pulled up the bedrails again. He sat down on Andy's side and she left the room with Traci and Lissy. When Lissy was drawing in the hospital lounge, Traci took a good look at Andy. ''So, how are you really doing?''

Andy sighed and shrugged her shoulders. ''Doctor said he should be okay, but the doctor also said that we could probably take him home today..''

''They just want to be sure, Andy,'' Traci tried to comfort her friend. ''They don't want to take any risks.''

''I know, I know,'' Andy agreed. ''It's just.. it's hard, you know?''

''Of course.'' Traci completely understood where Andy came from. Leo had never been in the hospital, but Traci was sure she would be worried sick too. ''Is there anything we can do? Jerry and I could take Lissy tonight or we could make you guys some dinner?''

''No, we want everything to stay normal for Lissy. She already been through so much lately..'' Andy's mind drifted to the helpless little girl she had to comfort only a few nights ago. Everything between her and Sam seemed so insignificant now. They would be okay, they had to be.

''How are things between you two now?'' Traci asked. She knew all about the problems between her best friend and her husband's best friend.

Andy looked over at Lissy and smiled. ''We'll work it out,'' she said. ''I love him and I know he loves me. He's really amazing right now.''

''Good.'' Traci was happy that they tried to make it work. Even Jerry had picked Andy's side on this, Sam had been too absent lately. ''You know that we're only a phone call away, right? Anything we can do, just name it..''

''Thanks Trace, you guys are all amazing.'' Andy hugged her best friend and took a deep breath. ''I'm going to take Lissy upstairs again, okay? Sam and I need to figure out what we're going to do for the night.''

''I can stay here with Lissy for a while, so you can talk to Sam?'' Traci offered. ''Jerry had a day off so Leo is already taken care off.''

Andy thought about it for a moment and decided it was actually a good offer. ''Yeah that would be good.'' Andy turned her attention to Lissy. ''Sweetie, aunt Traci is going to stay with you for a while, okay? Mommy is going to talk to daddy for a moment.''

Lissy didn't even look up from the paper. ''Kay.''

Andy thought it would be best if Sam went home with Lissy. He would be able to grab a few more hours of sleep before spending the night with Noah again. She also offered to stay for the night, but Sam thought it would be better if he took the nightshift.

After a while Sam agreed to Andy's plan to take Lissy home again. Tommy would come to visit Noah in the evening and would then go to the house to watch Lissy while Sam went back to the hospital. It was a good solution that would make sure that both of their kids wouldn't be alone at any point.

Before he could leave the room, Andy stopped Sam. Noah was asleep, his schedule was completely off because of everything that happened. Andy stood in front of Sam and kissed him. ''I just want to say thanks for everything,'' Andy said when they broke apart. ''There's nobody else I could do this with.''

''He's my son, Andy,'' Sam protested. ''Of course I'm here.''

''I know, I know,'' Andy agreed. ''I didn't mean it like that. I just mean that you take care of Lissy like she's your own and I feel like I haven't given you enough credit lately. This last two days have just really shown me what an amazing guy you are. I'm sorry I lost track of that for a moment.''

Sam pulled Andy in for a hug and they stood together for a few moments. ''Lately I probably haven't been that amazing,'' he admitted. ''And I take care of Lissy like she's my own because she's mine. We already went over this, she's mine no matter what any DNA test will tell you.''

''I know and if possible I even love you more for that,'' Andy said. ''I just think you don't realise that not many guys would be able to do that. You're one of a kind Sam Swarek,'' she concluded with a small smile on her lips.

''That I am,'' Sam agreed teasingly. He was just happy that they were back to their own self. Even if it was just for a moment and even if there still was a ton of stuff to worry about.

Sam took Lissy home and ate with her while Andy ate something from the cafeteria. When Lissy went to bed, Sam turned in too to grab a few more hours of sleep.

XX

**So..Noah still in the hospital, but Sam and Andy are finally growing closer again...**

**What do you think?**


	6. Chapter 6

_Here's the next chapter! I think I'm almost done with this and I'm trying to round up Coming Back as well. If there is anybody that has a prompt for another story, let me know. I won't promise I'll write it, because of course I have to be inspired to do so, but maybe it will give me some ideas. Currently, I am out of ideas. _

_XX_

Sam woke up the next morning when Noah started crying. When he returned to the hospital the night before, Andy had asked a nurse to bring in a bed for him. At first Sam was reluctant to take the offer, but when Noah went to sleep very easily, he decided he might as well get some rest too. To his surprise he actually drifted off and when he woke up he realised that Noah had slept through most of the night as well.

The little boy had woken up around three, but that was not completely unusual. Sam had taken him from his bed and tried to give him something to drink when the nurse brought him a bottle. Noah drank the entire bottle and fell asleep half an hour later.

''Hey buddy,'' Sam said as he lifted his son from the hospital crib. ''You seem to be feeling a bit better.'' Noah smiled as soon as Sam lifted him and put his hand in his mouth. After that he took Sam's nose in his hand, leaving Sam's nose wet. ''That's nice, thank you,'' Sam sarcastically said with a smile on his face.

While Sam was whipping his nose clean, he heard his phone ring, indicating he got a new text message.

-_Hey, how did he sleep? How is he? Did you manage to get some sleep too? Will be there as soon as I brought Lissy to school. Love you.-_

Sam quickly typed a reply with Noah on his lap. Andy had brought some toys from the house, Sam gave Noah one of them and Noah started pushing a few buttons.

-_He seems to be doing better, but the doctor hasn't been yet. Slept good, so did he. Don't worry, think we might be able to take him home today.-_

Sam actually was pretty confident that they would be taking their little man home. Sam pushed one of the buttons on Noah's toy and it started making a laughing sound. Noah started laughing along with the toy and that put a smile to Sam's face as well.

An hour later Andy walked in. Noah was sitting in his bed, surrounded by his toys. Sam was sitting next to the bed, playing with their son. ''Hey,'' Andy said as she walked in. She quickly leaned in to kiss Sam and then Noah. ''You look better little guy,'' she whispered against Noah's hair. ''I missed you.''

''He slept through most of the night,'' Sam said. ''Only woke up once and he drank a bottle, the nurse said that that's probably a good sign.''

Andy nodded and smiled. ''That's my boy,'' she praised.

''Lissy safe in school?'' Sam asked.

''Well, she wasn't exactly enthusiastic to go..'' Andy started. ''She was actually up when I got home last night.''

''She was in bed when I left,'' Sam replied. ''Maybe she woke up because Tommy and I were talking?''

Andy shrugged and caressed Noah's cheek. ''Don't know, my dad said she came downstairs and announced that she was done sleeping.''

Sam laughed and shook his head. ''Yeah, that sounds like her.''

''My dad decided to let her sit with him for a while. I think he misses her a little.'' Andy looked at Sam and straightened her back. ''Before he used to watch her all the time, but now she's in school and I'm on maternity leave.. I guess I'm afraid he's a bit lonely.''

''You'll be back at work in two weeks,'' Sam reasoned. ''He'll probably see her more after that. And he's going to watch Noah once a week, so he'll be fine Andy.''

''I know, but when everything settles down, let's take him somewhere, okay?'' Andy asked. She knew her father could look after himself, but she was afraid that the bottle was tempting him now that he had little to do.

''We'll do something as a family,'' Sam promised.

When the doctor came in, Andy sat up straight again. Noah started crying when he saw the doctor. Obviously he didn't have very good memories of the man. Sam took Noah in his arms and rocked him as they talked to the doctor. The doctor told them that Noah's blood work came back clear, there was nothing wrong with the little boy. After a few more tests they were given the all clear and were told to take their son home.

Andy sighed with relief and Sam kissed the top of Noah's head. Andy packed Noah's bag while Sam took care of the discharge papers. Sam told Andy to take Noah home in her car, she already had his car seat and Sam would follow her home. He walked his wife and son to the car and waited until she drove away to go to his truck.

When they were at home, Andy sat down on the couch with Noah in her lap. She laughed as Noah talked gibberish and trashed his hands around. Five minutes later Sam walked in, stopping a moment to look at the sight in front of him. ''Thank God he's okay,'' he said again.

''Yeah,'' Andy agreed. ''But he's home now, our perfect little guy.''

''We should probably let him sleep for a moment, right?'' Sam asked. ''I know his schedule is way off, but normally he would sleep around this time.''

Andy nodded and yawned. ''We could probably try. If he doesn't go to sleep we can always take him out of his crib again.''

Sam took Noah from Andy and brought him to his nursery. Sam quickly changed his diaper and put the boy in some clean PJs. Sam waited outside the nursery for a moment, but Noah didn't start crying. Sam made his way downstairs and sat down next to Andy. ''He's asleep.''

''Good,'' Andy said. ''Feel like I could sleep to.''

''Why don't you?'' Sam asked. ''He's asleep and I'm here in case he wakes up.''

''We haven't been home in two days. There are at least four loads of laundry that need to be done, I need to vacuum, the dishwasher needs to be unloaded, we have to pick up Lissy from school..'' Andy could probably go on for a while with the list of things to do.

''I'll take care of it,'' Sam promised. ''Just lie down. And don't worry about it. If it doesn't happen today, the laundry will still be there tomorrow.''

Andy closed her eyes and laid her head on Sam's shoulder. ''Let's just sit for a moment,'' she said. ''We haven't seen each other in ages.''

''I've seen you every day,'' Sam protested.

''You know what I mean,'' Andy argued. ''We haven't been alone in.. I don't even know when the last time was.'' Andy snuggled up closer to Sam and he pressed a kiss to her temple. ''Love you,'' Andy whispered.

''Love you too.'' Sam put his arm around Andy and traced patterns on her arm with his fingers. He felt Andy's breath even out, so he knew that she fell asleep. When he was sure she was in a deep enough sleep he slowly pulled himself away from her. He threw a blanket over her body and went upstairs.

First he grabbed a load of laundry and put it in the washing machine. After that he unloaded the dishwasher and cleaned the kitchen. When he noticed it was time to pick up Lissy, he quickly wrote Andy a note. He put on the baby monitor and put that on the table in front of the couch. If Noah would wake up, Andy would hear it.

XX

Andy woke up when she heard a baby cry. At first she was a little disorientated, but then she realised that she wasn't in the hospital anymore. Noah was fine and was safe at home. Andy saw the note that was on the coffee table and grabbed it.

_Andy,_

_I went to pick up Lissy from school. Will do groceries with her, so don't worry about dinner. Already did some laundry and the dishwasher is unloaded. Vacuuming can wait until tomorrow, so you just relax, okay? _

_Love you,_

_Sam_

Andy smiled and put the note down again. In times like this Sam really was everything she could wish for. Still, it worried her that they grew apart so easily. One moment they were happier than ever and the next they were throwing around the word divorce.

She shivered at the thought of how ugly their fights had been. Right now they needed to focus on the future though, no more blaming each other for what happened. The kids needed their parents to be stable and mature.

When Noah's cries grew louder, Andy stood up and walked upstairs to take her little man out of bed. ''Hey sweetie,'' she said when she walked in. Noah was sitting on his knees with a red face from crying. ''No need to get so upset,'' Andy said as she kissed Noah's cheek. ''Mommy's right here.''

As soon as she had lifted Noah from his crib, his crying stopped. Andy put the pacifier in his mouth and sat down with him in the chair that was in his room. She loved moments like this, where Noah was still slightly tired and would just cuddle up with her.

When Noah began to stir again, Andy lifted him up and changed him. She walked downstairs and put him on the floor. She put toys around him and sat down with him. After a little while she could hear her daughter's voice. The door wasn't even open yet, but Lissy was already filling the house with her singing.

Andy smiled and looked at the door. Five seconds later Lissy came running through and immediately walked over to her mom. Andy kissed her daughter. ''Hey, how was school?''

''I was miss Katie's help today,'' Lissy said with a big smile. ''I got to sit next to her and help her with a lot of things.''

''Like what?'' Andy asked.

''Like picking a book and there was a new girl and I helped her when she couldn't find anything.'' Lissy looked over at her baby brother and back at Andy. ''Daddy said Noah was better again.''

''Yeah,'' Andy smiled. ''He's not feeling completely better yet, but the doctor said we could take him home.'' Andy pulled her daughter into her lap and gave the little girl a big hug. Lissy squealed and giggled when Andy was tickling her.

''Mommy,'' Lissy squealed out between laughs. ''Stop, no fair.''

Andy laughed and let go of her daughter. When she looked at Noah he let out a loud cry. ''Oh, what's wrong Noah. A little jealous of your big sister, are we?''

Sam walked in and smiled at his family. This was how it was suppose to be, all of them under one roof. ''Who's jealous?'' he asked.

''Noah,'' Lissy said with a serious frown. ''Mommy was tickling me.''

Sam picked up his son from the floor and cradled him in his arms. ''Well, then we'll just have a boys moment, won't we Noah?'' Noah laughed when his dad picked him up and talked some gibberish. He fisted his hands in Sam's hair and started tugging. Sam laughed and forced his sons hand down again. ''Easy buddy.''

''So, did you and daddy do groceries, Lis?'' Andy asked.

''Yes we did and daddy even let me pick out a candy bar, but he said I couldn't have it before dinner.''

''That's true,'' Andy replied. ''Or else your belly will get sick.''

Lissy nodded and looked at Noah. ''And I don't want to go to the hospital too. It was really scary there.''

''You won't need to go to the hospital every time you get sick Lis. Noah was very sick, so he needed to go for a moment. And if you do ever have to go the hospital, I promise you mommy or daddy will stay with you.'' Sam said. ''Just like we did with Noah.''

''But I'm a big girl,'' Lissy said with a serious expression on her face.

''Yeah, but you're our big girl,'' Andy answered with a wink.

XX

The week flew by and before they knew it everything was back to normal again. Sam went back to work, but made a true effort to come home early. Especially since a week of absence he had a lot to do, but he made sure he at least ate at home every night. If necessary he would go back to work later, but at least he got to see the kids this way.

Andy enjoyed the last week she had at home with her kids. She was anxious to go back to work, but she also dreaded it a little. No matter how much she loved her job, she knew she would miss her children.

When the first day back at work arrived, Andy woke up before the rest of the house. It was stupid, but she felt kind of nervous. It had been almost a year since she worked. It would also be the first time that Noah would spent an entire day at daycare, Andy could only hope the little boy enjoyed it. He had been at daycare a few times to get used to it, every time it was fine afterwards, but Noah put up a kicking storm every time Sam or Andy tried to leave.

''Don't worry,'' Sam mumbled still half asleep. ''Everything will be fine.''

''I didn't even say anything,'' Andy protested.

Sam rolled to his side so he could face his wife. He linked their hands together and gave her a small peck on the lips. ''You don't have to say anything, I know when you're worrying.'' With his free hand he brushed a strand of hair from Andy's face. ''He'll be fine.''

''Lissy only cried twice when I dropped her off at daycare. Noah really doesn't seem to like it.'' Andy snuggled up a little closer to Sam and closed her eyes. ''But I am excited to go back to work.''

''I know,'' Sam said. ''It will be fine. They said he only cried for a minute the last time.''

''I know,'' Andy agreed. ''He'll be fine.''

As soon as the alarm clock went off, their morning ritual began. Sam brought Noah to daycare and Andy brought Lissy to school. As soon as Andy walked into the barn she was attacked by her friends. Everybody hugged her and told her how happy they were she was back.

When Best ended parade he looked at her and smiled. ''And finally I would like to welcome back officer Andy Swarek. We're glad to have you back.''

Andy smiled and gave her colleagues a nod while they applauded for her return. ''That being said, I want to see you in my office Swarek.''

Normally that would make Andy nervous, but right now she couldn't possibly have done anything wrong already. When she was seated in Best's office he smiled. ''How have you been?'' he asked.

''Good,'' Andy replied. ''It's a little weird to be back, but it feels good and I'm excited.''

''It's been a while since you've worked..'' Best continued.

Andy nodded and smiled faintly. Because of the complications during her pregnancy, she was put on bed rest for the last weeks of her pregnancy. That combined with her maternity leave caused an absence of nearly a year. ''I know, I'm not completely back into shape yet, but I am working on it.''

''You're a good cop McNally,'' Frank said. He still couldn't get used to the fact that she now carried the name of his friend. Most cops around the division still called her McNally. ''But I'm not comfortable with sending you back out on the streets immediately.''

''I understand,'' Andy replied. The old Andy would have hated being stuck behind a desk for a while, but she understood Frank was only looking out for her best interest. She had been off the streets for so long that she could put herself or her partner at danger.

''Today I need you to man the front desk,'' Frank informed. ''The rest of the time you'll probably switch between desk duty, booking and assisting the D's. When we decide you're ready for the streets we'll let you ride with officer Shaw again.''

At that Andy smiled, she loved Oliver. He was one of Sam's best friends, but to her he was like an uncle she never had. Besides Sam there wasn't someone she could feel safer with on the street.

Best dismissed Andy and she got to work. It was weird to be back, but it felt good. Sam texted her during lunch to ask if she was doing okay and before she knew it she was getting out of her uniform again.

''Penny?'' Traci asked hopeful. ''One drink to celebrate the fact that you're back?''

Andy shook her head and smiled. ''No, I just want to go home and cuddle up on the couch with Lissy and Noah. Besides, Sam promised to try and make it home early too tonight.''

Traci nodded, she was a little disappointed that her friends wouldn't come with her, but she totally understood Andy's need to go back home. Being away from your kids for ten hours was hard when you were used to seeing them all the time. ''Okay, as long as you promise to come one time soon.''

''Promise Traci, I really missed hanging out with you guys.''

XX

When she reached her car Andy felt her phone vibrate. She opened the new text message and smiled.

_-Don't need to pick up the kids, already done.- _

Andy drove home and when she walked through the door Lissy immediately threw herself at her mom. ''Daddy,'' she yelled out. ''Mommy is home.''

Sam walked into the hallway with Noah on his hip and smiled. ''Hey,'' he greeted his wife. He gave her a small peck on the lips. ''How was your first day back?''

''Good,'' Andy answered.

''Tired now?'' Sam asked.

Andy chuckled and shook her head. ''No, I was on desk and it was a slow day. Basically I drank a lot of coffee and talked to Dov.'' Andy kissed Noah's cheek and took him from Sam. ''Hey little man, did you have fun at daycare?''

''They said he did fine,'' Sam promised.

''How was he when you left?'' Andy asked. She had been worried about that, but decided not to call Sam to ask about it. If Noah would be upset she would only feel bad the entire day and there wasn't really much she could do about it while she was working.

''Fine,'' Sam said. ''He shed a few tears, but apparently he was already calm by the time I was walking to my truck.'' Sam put his hand on the small of Andy's back and guided her towards the living room. Lissy followed them and Noah stayed in Andy's arms. ''Now you sit and relax, dinner will be ready in about fifteen minutes.''

''I'll set the table,'' Andy replied.

''I already did that with daddy,'' Lissy chipped in. ''Daddy took all the stuff from the cupboards and then he let me put it on the table.''

''Oh, so you've been helping daddy, huh?'' Andy asked.

''Yes, because you need to relax,'' Lissy said, obviously repeating something that Sam had told her.

Andy smiled and sat down on the couch. Sam went back to the kitchen and Andy placed Noah on her lap. Her son put his hands on his mothers face and made a funny sound. He laughed and made more noises. ''And what did you do in school today?'' Andy turned to her daughter.

''I don't remember,'' Lissy answered. ''But daddy said I could pick what we are going to have for dinner.''

''Oh, then I guess I know what we're eating.'' Andy kissed the top of Lissy's head. Lissy was now sitting next to her on the couch. Lissy wasn't a big eater, Andy sometimes worried about that. The times they didn't need to force Lissy into eating were the times when they were eating macaroni and cheese.

''How?'' Lissy asked with her big brown eyes widened.

Andy laughed and ruffled Lissy's hair. ''That's mommy's secret.''

''Why did you go to work again?'' Lissy asked. ''Didn't you like being with Noah?''

''Of course I liked being with Noah, but mommy has got to work too sweetie.''

''Why?'' Lissy asked.

''Because mommy needs to make money and because it's important to work. When you were Noah's age mommy worked too.''

''And then you met daddy,'' Lissy filled in. She had already asked her parents how they met several times. ''And daddy made your car work again and bought me a book.''

Andy smiled and nodded. ''Yeah.'' Thinking back to those days always put a smile on Andy's face. Sam had been the first one to find out she had a daughter. Of course her staff sergeant and fellow rookies knew, but none of the T.O.'s knew. While Andy was convinced Sam would see her as unfit for her job knowing she had a baby at home, he had always been supportive.

Lissy had been a big fan of Sam from the moment she met. One of Andy's favorite video's of Lissy was a video where Lissy kept asking for ''Am'', then when Sam finally arrived she ran over to him on her wobbly feet and hugged him when he picked her up.

''And then he became my daddy,'' Lissy finished with a smile.

Closing her eyes and resting her head on top of Noah's Andy smiled and nodded. ''Yeah, he did.''

Later that night, Andy laid in Sam's arms. They were in bed and she was tracing patterns on his chest. ''Frank said Oliver will be my partner as soon as I'm going back on the streets,'' she softly said.

''Good,'' Sam replied. ''At least you'll be out there with someone who's got your back.''

''I've been thinking,'' Andy continued. ''I don't know how much longer I want to work on the streets.''

Sam turned to his side and let his arm fall over Andy's waist. ''I'm sorry you didn't get to take that rotation because of me.''

''It was my decision,'' Andy shrugged. It had stung at the time, but with how things were going she couldn't afford to take that rotation. ''And that's in the past now.''

''What do you want to do?'' Sam asked. He was determined to not let Andy hold back anymore. It was unfair that she didn't take the rotation she wanted because he was never at home. She deserved better than that.

''I'm not sure,'' Andy said. ''I just know that I don't want to work the streets for many more years. What do you think about that?''

Sam ran his hand across her face and kissed the top of her nose. ''I think you should do something that makes you happy,'' he vaguely said.

''Do you think we can handle it if I needed to study for test besides the kids, the household and work?'' Andy cautiously asked.

''Yes,'' Sam said without hesitation.

Andy sighed and rolled onto her back. She ran her hand across her face, looked at Sam and turned back.

''What?'' Sam asked.

''You always make it sound so easy,'' Andy began. ''Like there's no problem whatsoever.''

Sam sat up and looked at his wife. ''I thought we were doing good again,'' he said carefully. ''We spent an entire week together, I've been home for every meal since then.''

''I know, I know,'' Andy quickly responded. ''But the fact that we spent two weeks without fights doesn't mean we can handle anything,'' she continued. ''I know you are trying and I'm sorry, but I'm still a little hesitant.''

Sam sighed and nodded. ''I know,'' he answered. ''I know, but it's different this time.''

''You've said that before,'' Andy protested. ''And I want to believe you, I really do, but I also don't want to get my hopes up. Because if we go back to how things were, than there's no way that I'll be able to handle it. ''

''And that's all I need to know to stop that from happening,'' Sam argued. ''I know that I've made empty promises in the past, but this time it is going to be different.''

Andy sat up too and cupped Sam's face in one hand. She let her hand roam over his chest and pushed him so he would lay down. She laid down too and put her head on his chest again. ''I love you,'' she whispered. ''You and the kids are my life.''

''You too,'' Sam replied. ''And that's all I need to keep in mind for me to not mess it up again, okay? You guys are everything. So whatever you decide you want to do, we can make it work, together.''

Andy smiled and pressed a kiss to his chest. ''Together,'' she agreed.

XX

_I think there will be an epilogue and that will be it!_


	7. Chapter 7

_So this is the last chapter of this story.  
I'm ready to say goodbye to this little family._

XX

Andy kissed the tip of her daughters nose and nuzzled her forehead. She looked down at the small bundle in her arms and couldn't help but shed another tear.

Sam wrapped his arm around her from the side and pressed a kiss to her temple. ''She's perfect,'' he said. ''So perfect.''

''Yeah,'' Andy softly agreed. ''She is.''

''I told you everything would work out, right?'' Sam asked.

Andy nodded and smiled up at her husband, turning her attention away from her newborn daughter for a moment. ''Thank you,'' she whispered. ''I know I'm not exactly easy, but I couldn't have done this without you.''

''We're a team,'' Sam replied.

''When will my dad come?'' Andy asked.

''Soon,'' Sam promised. 'Lissy was asleep, but I told him to wake her up. I think she wants to meet her little sister.''

Andy looked down at the tiny person in her arms and another tear rolled down her cheek. ''I can't believe I wasn't sure about this,'' Andy said with guilt in her voice. ''Look at her, she's perfect.''

''She is,'' Sam agreed again.

XX

_Andy had been acting weird for a few days now and Sam was on his last nerve. She was hot and cold with him, but also with the kids. _

_One moment she would be the most affectionate mother in the world, the next she was screaming at them for some little thing. _

''_Okay,'' Sam said when he came downstairs from tucking Lissy in. ''We're going to talk.''_

_Andy raised an eyebrow and looked at him. ''Talk about what?''_

''_Talk about what is up with you,'' Sam explained. ''Something is bothering you and I want to know what.''_

''_I'm fine,'' Andy insisted as she walked away from him. _

_Sam shook his head and gritted his teeth. ''No you are not,'' he said when he grabbed her arm. He grabbed her hard enough to keep her in place, but not hard enough to hurt her. ''Talk to me, tell me what is wrong.''  
_

_Andy sighed and looked up at Sam. She shrugged her shoulders and let out a defeated breath. ''I think I'm pregnant,'' she said so quiet that Sam actually wondered if he heard her right. _

''_What?'' he asked. ''How?'' He was a little lost for words actually. They had talked about it and agreed that their family was complete. They both had a busy job and they felt blessed to have two healthy kids. Besides, in the few years of their marriage they had already had quite the few struggles. They both agreed that they should just be happy with what they got and focus on that. _

''_Well, I would guess the old fashioned way,'' Andy replied with sarcasm in her voice. Her eyes were glistening and she sat down on the couch. ''We were careful,'' she said. ''Nothing is 100% effective.'' _

''_Okay,'' Sam said as he sat down next to her. He took a deep breath and tried to wrap his head around this information his wife just gave him. ''Have I missed something?'' he then asked. ''With Noah you were sick all the time.''_

_Andy shook her head and turned to face Sam. ''I've been on morning shifts,'' she explained. ''I got sick at the station a few times, you couldn't have known. And I'm late..''_

''_Did you take a test?'' Sam asked. ''Maybe you're just coming down with something.''_

''_I haven't,'' Andy admitted. ''But I'm pretty sure I am.'' Silence washed over them as they both thought about what a new baby would mean to their plans. ''I'm scared,'' Andy admitted. ''What if we can't handle it?''_

_Sam scooted a little closer to his wife and pressed a kiss to her temple. ''First of all, we don't know for sure,'' he reasoned. ''And second of all, if you are then we'll deal with it just like we dealt with everything else. We made our way through everything else too.''_

''_How close did we come to losing this,'' Andy motioned between the two of them, ''After Noah was born. How do you know that won't happen again?''_

''_Because we have both grown,'' Sam promised. ''Because we both know what not to do. Okay, we don't know for sure that you are pregnant, but if you are..'' A small smile formed on Sam's lips. ''If you are then I promise you that it will be a good thing.'' _

_Sam cupped Andy's cheek in one hand and softly pressed his lips to hers. ''I love you,'' he said. ''I know it's not what we planned, but if you're going to make me a father again then I'm happy about that.'' Sam kissed her again and smiled. ''So happy,'' he added. _

_Andy nodded. She knew that a part of Sam wanted to experience the entire process of a new life again. He loved Lissy just as much as he loved Noah, but with her he did miss that first year. ''What now?'' Andy asked as she raised her eyes so they could meet Sam's._

''_Do a test,'' Sam said. ''There is no point in discussing this if it turns out you're not pregnant.'' Sam stood up, walked towards the kitchen and came back with his keys in his hand. ''I'll be back within fifteen minutes,'' he promised. _

_Andy just nodded again and looked at the floor. She was disturbed from her thoughts when Sam crouched down in front of her. ''Hey,'' he said again. ''I mean it, we'll be fine. I promise.''_

_Andy smiled and leaned in to place her lips on Sam's. ''I love you,'' she muttered against his mouth. _

_True to his word, Sam was back with time to spare. ''Well, the kid at the counter gave me quite the glare, but I bought four different tests. I didn't know which one was right.'' _

''_Should I take it now?'' Andy asked. ''I read somewhere that it's more effective in the morning.'' _

_Sam shrugged his shoulders and laid down the tests on the coffee table. ''How about you take one or two now? If it's negative you can always take another one tomorrow morning to be sure. False positive almost never happens, right?''_

''_Yeah, okay,'' Andy agreed. She grabbed two tests of the table and looked at Sam. ''I'll just go..'' she motioned to where to bathroom was. _

''_Yeah, sure, sure.'' Sam hated to admit it, but he was nervous as hell. A big part of him hoped that Andy would come out with two positive tests. He knew he wasn't a perfect father, but he loved his kids more than anything. Another, smaller part of him knew that there was a good reason why Andy and he decided that their family was complete. _

_He came close to losing his family on more than one occasion and even though he knew they were better and stronger now, the thought of going back to that dark place was too terrifying to even consider it. _

_A minute later Andy walked out with the sticks in her hand. She placed them in front of them and looked at Sam. ''It will just take a few minutes,'' she said. _

_Sam grabbed her hand and placed a kiss on it. ''It will be okay,'' Sam promised again. ''Whatever it says, we'll be okay.''_

''_I know,'' Andy agreed. ''You're here.''_

A few minutes later the timer that Andy placed by the tests went off and Andy and Sam looked at each other. ''You look,'' Andy said. ''Two stripes is positive, one is negative.'' 

''_Okay,'' Sam said. He waited a second and then leaned forward to grab the two tests. When he saw the result he looked back at Andy. The look on his face told her all she needed to know. Sam looked serious, but she knew him well enough to know that he was happy. _

''_I'm pregnant,'' she whispered. She closed her eyes for a few seconds and then opened them again. ''I'm pregnant,'' she repeated. _

_Sam stood up and grabbed Andy's hand to pull her up too. He put his arms around Andy's waist and let her hide her face against his chest. ''I love you,'' Sam said against her hair. ''I know this isn't what you wanted, but I'm so happy about this.''_

_Sam just held Andy for a while and felt the silent tears that fell on his shirt. ''Come with me,'' he told her after a few moments. He took Andy's hand in his and guided her upstairs. First he took her into Lissy's room. They stood together by the door and looked at their sleeping daughter. ''How can this...'' Sam began. Then he took a few steps back and leaded Andy to Noah's room. ''Or this, ever be wrong?''_

''_It's not wrong,'' Andy whispered. ''I know it's a good thing, I just need some time to get used to the idea.'' _

''_I know,'' Sam said. ''I know, but every time you feel scared, just look at Lissy and Noah.''_

_Andy turned around to face Sam and smiled up at him. ''I love you,'' she said again. ''You're an amazing father.''_

''_I love you and our kids,'' Sam promised. ''All three of them,'' he added with a grin on his face._

''_All three,'' Andy agreed. _

XX

''Hey Sare,'' Sam said when his sister finally picked up her phone. ''Tried calling you before.''

''_It's 8AM,'' _Sarah complained. ''_Just wait until your kids finally sleep till after nine, you won't be picking up any phones that go off before 8 either.'' _

''Yeah, that might be a while,'' Sam chuckled.

''_If you're calling about Andy's birthday, I did manage to take the day off, so we'll all be down there.''_

''I was actually wondering if you wanted to come by sooner?'' Sam asked. ''Like today or tomorrow actually.''

''_Something wrong?'' _Sarah asked immediately. ''_Anything wrong with Andy or the baby?''_

''No,'' Sam tried to calm down his sister. ''They are both fine, both perfect actually. But I guess you want to meet your new niece as soon as possible.''

''_What?'' _Sarah asked. ''_Andy gave birth already? That's too soon, right?''_

''Sarah relax,'' Sam tried. ''Yeah, it was too soon, but she was a little ahead of schedule and she's doing good. She's on the small side, but the doctor said we can probably take her home tomorrow.''

''_How's Andy?'' _Sarah asked. ''_And what's her name?'' _Sarah paused for a moment and then seemed to realise something. ''_Oh and congratulations of course, I'm so happy for you.''_

''Andy's doing good,'' Sam promised. ''Exhausted, but blissful and happy.'' Sam swallowed the lump in his throat and smiled proudly. ''We named her Quinn Sarah Swarek.''

''_Sam,'' _ Sarah said. Sam could practically hear the tears in her voice.

''It was Andy's idea,'' Sam replied. ''I thought it was fitting.''

''_And she's completely healthy?'' _Sarah asked again.

''She's perfect,'' Sam repeated. ''She's a mix of Lissy and Noah. A lot of hair for a premature baby, quite the set of lungs, ten fingers, ten toes, everything we could ask for.''

''Congratulations Sam,'' Sarah said again. ''I'm so proud of you.''

''Thanks Sarah,'' Sam replied.

''Go back to your wife,'' Sarah instructed. '' Tell Andy congratulations, I'll drive to town later today.''

Sam ended the phone call and made his way back to Andy's room. ''Sarah says congratulations,'' he said when he entered the room. ''She'll be here later today.''

Andy smiled up at Sam. ''Want to hold her?'' she asked.

''Yes,'' Sam grinned. He sat down on Andy's bed and held out his arms. Gently he took Quinn from her mother. As soon as she was in his arms, he placed a tender kiss on her forehead. ''She's beautiful, huh?'' Sam asked.

''She is,'' Andy agreed when she let out a yawn.

''Maybe you should try to get some sleep,'' Sam tried.

''No, want to be awake when my dad comes with the kids. He can be here any minute, right?''

''Yeah, probably.'' Sam couldn't keep his eyes of his newborn daughter. She had her tiny fist wrapped around one of his fingers.

''And you wanted her to be a boy,'' Andy teased. ''Looks like you're pretty content with this one too mister.''

XX

_Sam walked into the house at 1AM. He really made an effort to come home at reasonable hours these days, but sometimes he couldn't help but be late. Andy understood the importance of his job and saw he was making an effort to not let it happen too often. _

_Sam hated the fact that he was late for the third night in a row. He had tried to get out of it, but he needed to be part of a takedown. He hated the fact that Andy had to deal with the kids on her own, especially since she was pregnant and tired. _

_Lissy was 7 now and helped Andy as much as she could. Noah was three and very demanding. Especially around bedtime Noah could be extremely difficult, but Sam knew that Andy could deal with it. He just wished she didn't have to do it alone. _

_After a quick glance in his children bedrooms, Sam walked towards the bathroom and got ready for bed. After that he went to the master bedroom. There was a small light on and Andy was propped up on an elbow reading a book. _

''_Hey,'' Sam greeted her. ''What are you still doing up?'' Sam quickly leaned down and first kissed Andy's growing bump and then Andy's lips. _

_Andy smiled at the small gesture and cupped Sam's cheek. ''You know I can't sleep when you're out doing something that's potentially dangerous.''_

''_I didn't even tell you anything,'' Sam protested._

''_I know,'' Andy agreed. ''But I can see it in the way you say goodbye to the kids and me. Nobody got hurt?'' she asked. _

''_No, everything went according to plan.'' Sam quickly got rid of his clothes and laid down besides Andy. As soon as he was on his side, Sam slid his hand underneath Andy's shirt caressing her no longer flat stomach. _

''_You'll be there tomorrow, right?'' Andy asked. She had a sonogram planned and she really wanted Sam to be there with her. _

''_Wouldn't miss it for the world,'' Sam promised. _

''_With a little luck we'll know if it's a boy or a girl tomorrow,'' Andy said. She scooted a little closer to Sam and placed her head on his chest. ''What do you want?'' she asked. ''Do you care?''_

''_It would be great if it's a boy,'' Sam said. ''I would be a lot more comfortable if Lissy had two brothers to look out for her.'' _

_Andy smiled. ''If it's a girl you and Noah would be working overtime, right?''_

''_If she's a little bit like her mother, yes.'' Andy slapped Sam's chest and he quickly grabbed her hand. ''Seriously McNally, you have been in more dangerous situations than anyone I know.'' _

''_You love me,'' Andy protested. _

''_That I do.''_

_XX_

''Mommy,'' Lissy shouted when she ran into the room, followed by a much more quiet Noah.

'''Sssh,'' Sam said as he lifted Lissy of the ground. ''Your baby sister is sleeping, so you have to be quiet, okay?''

Lissy nodded and Sam placed her on one of Andy's sides.

''Mommy,'' Noah said as he raised his arms. Sam took his son by the arms and lifted him to the other side of Andy's bed.

Andy lowered Quinn a little so Noah and Lissy could take a good look at their sister. ''Look sweeties, this is Quinn, your baby sister.''

''She is so cute,'' Lissy said with a smile. ''How do you spell Quinn?''

''Q-U-I-N-N-,'' Sam spelled it out for her.

''Small baby,'' Noah said with a thumb in his mouth.

''Can I hold her?'' Lissy asked.

Sam glanced over at Andy and saw her nod. ''But you have to be really careful, okay Lis?''

Lissy nodded and held out her hands eagerly.

''Not so fast Lissy,'' Sam interrupted. ''Come here.'' Sam took Noah off the bed so Andy could move to the side. When there was some room, Sam motioned for Lissy to crawl up further onto the bed. When she was seated Sam placed a pillow under her arm. He took Quinn from Andy and looked Lissy in the eye. ''You have to be really careful, okay?''

Lissy nodded again and looked at her baby sister. Sam gently lowered Quinn into Lissy's waiting arms. ''You have to hold her head like that,'' Sam instructed. He kept his hands close to Quinn as Lissy held her. ''Just like that, perfect,'' Sam praised.

''Baby gone?'' Noah asked. He couldn't see Quinn anymore from his position on the floor.

Andy whispered to Sam that she would keep an eye on Lissy and Quinn. So Sam picked up his son again. He pressed a kiss to his forehead and placed him on the hospital bed again. ''Look there's your sister.''

Sam glanced over at Andy and noticed the tears in her eyes. He used his thumb to wipe them away. ''I wonder what she's going to look like later,'' Andy said. ''Lissy's like a copy of me and Noah is a mini you.''

''I think she has a little bit of both of us already,'' Sam said.

''Can you grab my phone?'' Andy asked. ''I want to call Traci.''

As Sam made his way over to her bag, Andy couldn't help but feel sad for a moment. She had her husband here to help her with everything. Her best friend wasn't so lucky anymore.

XX

_The death of Jerry Barber took its toll on everybody. Andy tried her best to be there for her best friend and her husband, but she couldn't split herself in two. _

_The first night after Jerry's death Andy stayed with Traci. Sam had send her away, saying she should be with Traci, he was fine. _

_The days dragged by and Andy hardly ever saw Sam. Whenever she did see see him, he smelled like alcohol. _

_Andy got it, she did. Jerry was his best friend and now he wasn't there anymore. _

_Andy tried to get Sam to talk to her, but that just ended with him storming out of the house again. _

_A few days after Jerry's death Andy didn't even bother calling Sam anymore to ask where he was. He wouldn't pick up, she knew that. _

_Whenever he was at home, he was quiet. Lost in thoughts and probably blaming himself for everything he never had any control over. _

_Andy felt like she was drowning. Her best friend had lost her husband, her husband had lost his best friend. Now she was left to help them get trough that while she also had her kids to worry about. _

_Noah was 1 and didn't need any kind of explanation. Lissy was 5 though and noticed that something was very wrong. Andy tried to explain as best as she could, but some things were just impossible to explain. _

_At the funeral Andy sat next to Traci and Leo. Lissy was in her lap, the little girl insisted that she wanted to say goodbye to her uncle Jerry too. Chris had promised to take Lissy outside if things would become too much for her. _

_During the funeral Sam stood in the back. As soon as it was over he turned around and jumped in his truck again. _

_Andy went back to the Barber's house, but soon she decided that Lissy shouldn't be around all this sadness for too long. She asked Traci if there was anything she could do for her, but Traci insisted that Andy should head home and be with her family. Traci's and Jerry's family surrounded her, so Andy knew she was taken care of. _

_On the way home Lissy had about a million questions for Andy. Each one more difficult to answer than the one before. Andy drove over to her father's place, ready to pick up Noah. _

_When she knocked on her father's door, he opened with a sad smile. ''Hey sweetheart,'' he said. ''How are you.''_

''_Fine,'' Andy insisted. She intended to not break down in front of her daughter. ''I just came to get Noah and then I have to go home immediately. Thanks for watching him.''_

''_Sam already came by to pick him up,'' Tommy said. Tommy looked at Lissy who was chasing a butterfly in her black dress. ''How is he holding up?'' Tommy asked. _

_Andy shook her head and her eyes filled with tears. ''I don't know,'' she said. She really didn't want to cry, but she had been putting on a brave face for almost a week now. ''He isn't even talking to me.'' _

''_Maybe the hardest part is over now?'' Tommy asked. ''You know he's not good with words.''_

''_I know, it's just hard,'' Andy explained. ''I need to go home, thanks again dad.''_

''_Anytime,'' Tommy told her as he hugged his daughter. ''If you and Sam need some time, bring by the kids any time.''_

''_I will,'' Andy promised. ''I love you.''_

''_Love you too kiddo.''_

_When they reached the house Lissy ran to the door. Andy wished she could be a little bit more like a five year old. Of course Lissy was sad, but she was still her happy perfect daughter. _

_Andy found Noah in his high chair, with Sam feeding him. Sam didn't look at her when she walked in. Andy saw he already changed out of his formal uniform and into his jeans and t-shirt. ''Hey,'' Andy tried. _

_Sam didn't say anything, but just nodded. _

_Andy bit her bottom lip and tried to find words to make things a little bit better, but there weren't any. _

''_Mommy,'' Lissy asked. ''Can I go play outside?'' _

_Andy tried to smile again and nodded. ''Sure sweetie, we're just going to change into something else, okay?''_

_Andy couldn't get Sam to talk to her. He still helped with Noah, but he couldn't deal with Lissy. Noah was easier, he didn't ask any questions and Lissy did. _

_As the days flew by, Andy could feel Sam withdrawing from her. He was almost never home and whenever he was home he was sleeping off his hangover. Andy didn't know what to do anymore._

_A week after Jerry's funeral, Andy was doing the laundry when Lissy came into the laundry room. Lissy was in tears and hugged Andy's leg. _

_Lissy wasn't the crying or clingy type so Andy immediately crouched down and lifted Lissy in her arms. ''Hey sweetie,'' she said. ''What's going on?''_

''_Daddy is mad at me,'' Lissy said between sobs. ''He was yelling really hard.'' _

''_What happened?'' Andy asked. _

''_I spilled some juice, but it was an accident and then daddy got really mad. He said a very bad word too.'' _

_Andy held her daughter for a few more moments and calmed her down. She was thankful that Noah was still taking naps and that she only had one child to deal with now. ''Daddy is just really sad about uncle Jerry sweetie,'' Andy tried even though she knew it was no excuse. ''He's not himself.''_

''_Okay,'' Lissy said as she sniffled one more time._

''_Why don't you go play in your room for a moment?'' Andy asked. ''Mommy needs to talk to daddy for a moment.''_

_When she reached the kitchen, Andy saw Sam mopping the floor. ''Lissy's upset,'' she said. _

''_Sorry,'' Sam said. _

''_Guess you should go say that to her. Or say anything at all to her. I know you're grieving. I know we all grieve in our own way, but don't take this out on us.''_

_Sam sighed and straightened his back. ''I am taking it out on you,'' he nodded. ''I'm sorry,'' he repeated. _

''_I'm trying to go through this with you,'' Andy said. _

''_I can't Andy,'' Sam warned. ''I can't do this now.''_

''_Can't do what?'' Andy asked. _

''_Stand here, talking with you like everything is okay. I just can't do it.'' With that Sam turned around and walked out of the door once again. _

_After that afternoon Andy didn't see him for two whole days. She called to his work, but he had called in to take some personal days. Andy didn't know what to tell Lissy anymore and she had a really hard time dealing with everything on her own. She wanted to be there for Traci, she needed to work, she had two kids that needed her attention and she was worrying sick about her husband. _

_Two days later Sam showed up again, still not willing to talk. He went back to work and tried to put a smile on his face. Andy could tell he was faking it though, at home he was still very bitter. _

_She tried everything. She tried giving him space, she tried yelling, she tried crying, but nothing helped. Nothing got trough to Sam. _

_Seven weeks after Jerry's death, Andy was extremely tired. She didn't sleep at night because she worried too much. During the day she was either working or taking care of the kids._

_One second her tiredness got the best of her and Andy made a mistake. A mistake that could have cost her her life, if it wasn't for the vest she wore every day. She turned her back on someone that then fired his gun at her. _

_Thankfully Oliver was there to take down the shooter. Within five minutes Andy was wheeled into the back of an ambulance. She blacked out in the ambulance and woke up in the hospital, with Sam next to her bed. His eyes were bloodshot and he looked worse than Andy ever saw him. _

_Sam didn't say anything, he just stared at her. Andy didn't know what to say to him either, they were barely talking at the house too. _

_Sam was the first to break the silence. ''You don't turn your back on someone with a gun,'' he said. He pronounced every word with extra force, making sure she got his point. Andy could see that he was angry, but she didn't even care about that anymore. _

''_I didn't think,'' she said softly._

''_That's your problem,'' Sam angrily spat out. ''You never think and then maybe next time it's me that's putting you in the ground.''_

_Taken aback by his words Andy's eyes widened. ''Sam I'm fine,'' she tried. _

''_Yeah, what if those bullets were any higher?'' Sam asked. ''Then I could explain to our kids right now that their mom got herself killed, just like their uncle.''_

''_Sam,'' Andy warned. ''Don't.''_

_Sam took a step back and shook his head. ''You have to stay tonight for observation. You broke a few ribs and there's a chance for a punctured lung.'' _

''_I can't stay,'' Andy protested. ''My dad's not home and someone needs to be with the kids.''_

''_You're staying here, I'm gonna stay with the kids.''_

''_I'm going home,'' Andy said as she threw the covers off herself. _

_Sam took a step forward again and grabbed Andy's hands to stop her from trying to get up. ''Could you stop being so damn stubborn for one second. I told you I'm going home and you're going to stay here.'' _

''_I'm not.''_

''_Do you realise how lucky you are?'' Sam practically yelled. ''If Oliver would have reacted a second later, that guy could have fired again. Maybe that time he would have hit your head.''_

''_But he didn't,'' Andy argued. ''I'm going home.''_

''_I'm not losing you too McNally.''_

''_What do you even care, huh?'' Andy said with tears in her eyes. ''You barely look at me, you don't talk to me, so why do you care now?''_

_After that Sam was silent. He gave up on trying to get Andy to stay in bed, he just sat there. ''I love you,'' he said after a moment. ''If something would happen to you too, I don't know what I would do.''_

_Andy sniffed one more time and shook her head. ''So how is this helping?'' she asked helplessly. ''I know you're hurting, but you need to talk to me. I tried to give you space, but that's not working. You are either working, drinking or ignoring me.'' Andy looked Sam straight in the eye and shrugged her shoulders. ''I understand that you need time, but I refuse to let my kids grow up the way I did.''_

_Deep down Sam knew she was right. She grew up with Tommy McNally, and even though that he loved Andy and was sober now, Andy's childhood was far from perfect. Sam nodded and closed his eyes. _

''_I know you love me,'' Andy said. ''I know you love Lissy and Noah more than anything,'' she continued. ''And I know you loved Jerry too and that you're not good at dealing with feelings. But you have to do something Sam. You can't go on like this. If you need some time, take some time off and spent a week at Sarah's, go somewhere with Oliver, I don't care. Just try to deal with it, please.''_

_Sam stood up and walked to the window. He crossed his arms across his chest and gazed outside. ''Please just lay down, you're hurting yourself,'' he said after a minute. _

_Andy sighed. ''Sam,'' she said, but she still laid back down. _

''_You're right,'' Sam said after another minute. ''I'm haven't been myself lately.''_

''_And that's perfectly understandable,'' Andy reasoned. ''But at some point, you've got to look ahead again. We have a family and two beautiful kids that need their father.'' Andy winced when she moved and took a deep breath. ''And I need you too.''_

_Sam turned around and nodded again. He slowly walked towards Andy and sat down on the bed. He put his hand on the top of her head and then moved it down. When he was cupping her cheek he ran his thumb over Andy's lip. ''You really scare the shit out of me sometimes.''_

''_I'm going to be fine,'' Andy insisted. ''It was stupid, but I was just so tired and I didn't think. But that's why we have a partner, to have our backs. And Oliver had mine.''_

''_I'm going to thank him for a long time for that,'' Sam said. ''And I'm sorry,'' he added after a while. ''I know I messed up. I just don't know how to deal with everything. The thought of anything ever happening to you..''_

''_I'm here,'' Andy promised. ''I can't promise that nothing will ever happen to me, but you can't live your life like this Sam. Look at what happened to my dad.. he missed every big moment after I turned 14, they made him quit his job..''_

''_I'm just messed up right now,'' Sam said. ''I'll be okay.''_

''_Just talk to someone,'' Andy asked for the millionth time, but this time she felt like she might actually get through to him. ''You don't have to talk to me right now if that's too hard, but then talk to Frank, Oliver, Sarah, just someone.''_

''_I know, I know,'' Sam said again. _

''_Just try, please,'' Andy said with tear filled eyes. ''Because you say you can't lose me, but I can't lose you either. And I feel like I am.''_

_Sam grabbed Andy's hand and gave it a squeeze. ''You should try to sleep,'' he said. ''I'm going to head home. Peck is with the kids now.''_

_Andy hated that she was doubting him, but for the past seven weeks she couldn't rely on Sam for anything. ''Are you sure you're okay alone with them?'' she asked. ''I'm sure Gail could stay if I asked, or maybe Chris.''_

_Sam shook his head and closed his eyes. ''No alcohol, I promise.'' _

_Andy thought back to all the times her father made her that promise. It was hard to believe that Sam would actually keep his word. Still, she had to believe him. He was not her father and even though the last few weeks he had shown some similarities, she knew he deserved her faith in him. ''Okay,'' she said. ''Just call someone if it gets too much, okay?''_

''_Promise,'' Sam replied._

''_Noah will probably go to bed easy, but he always wakes up around 12 now. I don't know, maybe he just feels the tension around the house or something, because he never wants anything. Just wants to be held for a moment, I think.'' Andy took a deep breath and tried to ignore the pain in her abdomen. ''And Lissy's pretty easily upset too these days, she's really clingy. So maybe don't tell her I'm in the hospital just yet, just say I'm working or something.''_

''_Okay,'' Sam said while he tried to process all this information. He couldn't believe he missed all of this. He couldn't believe he let Andy deal with everything on her own. _

''_Lissy has a hard time sleeping,'' Andy continued. ''She usually climbs out of bed like three times before she falls asleep. This last week I stayed with her until she slept, because she was scared.'' Andy would hate to tell Sam that he was one of the reasons that Lissy was upset. Lissy was really afraid that her father wouldn't come back home. Andy just hoped that Lissy would be okay with just Sam for tonight._

''_God, everything is a mess,'' Sam said again. ''I can't even wrap my head around everything that happened, they're just kids, how are they supposed to deal with it?''_

''_Noah will be fine,'' Andy replied. ''He's just upset because everybody around him is upset. Lissy will be fine too, she just needs to see that you'll be okay.''_

''_I'll talk to her,'' Sam said. ''It's about time I sort out the mess I made.''_

''_It's not your fault,'' Andy defended him. ''I don't know what I would've done if it were Traci that.. I get that it's hard,'' she settled for. ''I know he was your best friend and that this turned your life upside down.''_

_Sam nodded and glanced over at the clock. ''You'll be okay?'' he asked. ''I'm gonna go then, go home to the kids.''_

''_Give them a kiss from me.''_

_When Sam walked into the living room he saw Noah on the floor with some toys around him. Lissy was on the couch with Gail, under a blanket watching a movie. ''Hey,'' Sam said softly. _

_Gail stood up and walked towards him. ''How is she?'' she immediately asked. The tragedy of Jerry was still fresh in her memory, she was still dealing with everything that happened and her role in it too. _

''_In pain,'' Sam explained. ''But she'll be okay, just needs to rest and take things easy for a while. How are the kids?''_

_Gail glanced back at the toddler and little girl behind her and shrugged her shoulders. ''I don't know. Noah seems to be okay, but Lissy is really quiet. She isn't as talkative as she normally is.''_

''_Yeah, nothing is like normal,'' Sam muttered. ''Thanks Peck, I've got it from here.''_

''_Call me if you need anything,'' Gail said. ''Day or night. Nick can pitch in too if you need anything.''_

_Sam thanked Gail again and showed her out. When he reached the living room again, he first kissed Noah on his chubby cheek. After that he sat down next to Lissy. _

''_When is mommy coming home?'' Lissy asked._

''_It's just the three of us for tonight,'' Sam explained. ''Mommy will be home tomorrow.''_

''_Why?'' Lissy asked in a small voice. ''I want mommy.''_

''_Hey,'' Sam said as he scooted a little closer. ''Come here for a moment.'' Lissy hesitated and glanced up at Sam. She reluctantly came closer and then Sam kissed the top of her head. ''I know that I wasn't really nice lately, but daddy's going to make it better, okay?''_

''_Why?'' Lissy asked again. _

_A small smile formed on Sam's lips. If he would get a dollar for every time Lissy asked him 'Why', then he would be a millionaire. ''Daddy's just sad,'' Sam explained. ''But I promise that I'll be better.''_

''_Mommy said you didn't mean to yell, but that sometimes you missed uncle Jerry so much that you just got mad.''_

_Sam sighed and closed his eyes. ''Mommy's right,'' he said. ''But things will get better.''_

_Things didn't magically got better, after a while Sam decided that he couldn't get out of this mess by himself. He went to talk to someone. Even though the first few sessions were useless because he didn't say anything, after a while he started to open up. _

_The kids didn't suffer from his behaviour anymore. From time to time he still needed some space, but he didn't take it out on them anymore. _

_Things with Andy did stay difficult for a long time. They fought a lot, but they both knew that they loved each other too much to let go. When Andy suggested they went to counselling, Sam just shook his head and went to bed. Three weeks later it was him that suggested they would talk to someone. His therapy was really helping him and he felt Andy and himself drifting apart. He was not losing her. _

_Therapy helped them sort out their problems. They were able to talk to each other, but also able to give each other space when needed. Things stayed difficult for a long time, but eventually they worked it out. Their love was stronger than their differences. _

_XX_

''Is she sleeping again?'' a slightly frustrated Lissy asked when Sam brought Quinn home the next day.

''She's a baby Lis, they sleep a lot,'' Andy explained.

''But I wanted to play with her,'' Lissy pouted.

''Me too,'' Noah pouted along with his big sister.

Andy smiled and shook her head. She first gave Noah a kiss and then Lissy. ''You know what?'' she asked. ''Since mommy gets to stay home from work for a long time now and Quinn will be asleep a lot, mommy has got a lot of free time to spent with the two of you!''

''Really?'' Lissy asked, suddenly a lot happier.

''Yup,'' Andy answered. ''And you know what else? Because mommy might be a little bit tired, daddy will stay home for a while too.''

Sam saved up some vacation time, so he could spent more time with his family. He figured that Andy could use the help and he really wanted to be home more.

''Daddy!'' Noah practically yelled.

Andy laughed and ruffled her sons hair. ''Yeah buddy.''

''And now it's time for mommy to go to bed,'' Sam told the kids. ''And Quinn too.''

''No fair,'' Lissy said. ''She just got home.''

''I know, but mommy needs to rest,'' Sam argued. ''And while she's sleeping, we can do something fun together.''

''Can Quinn come too?'' Lissy asked again.

''No, just the three of us sweetheart,'' Sam responded.

That night the Swarek household was quiet at an early hour. The only voices came from the master bedroom, where Sam and Andy were lying in bed together. Quinn was in her father's arms while he rocked her to sleep.

''I can't believe we're doing this again,'' Andy whispered. ''Late night feedings, changing diapers, getting to know this new little person.''

''Yeah,'' Sam agreed. ''Let's hope this one takes after me.''

''Sorry?'' Andy asked. ''If this one takes after you than you can get out of bed when she wakes up. If she takes after me, she'll sleep through the night in no time.''

''I'm pretty sure you were the one waking me up every two hours for the last month,'' Sam protested.

''I was uncomfortable,'' Andy argued. ''And you snore. And you steal my blankets.''

''God Quinn,'' Sam complained. ''Hear mommy whine about daddy. Makes you wonder why she's still with him, huh? If he's such a pain in the ass.''

''Well Quinn,'' Andy said as she laid her head on Sam's shoulder and ran her finger across her daughters cheek. ''Daddy might be a snoring blanket stealer, he's also a really sweet man. He's a very good daddy and he's going to teach you so much. And when you're a little older and scared, then he's going to protect you and make sure you feel safe.''

''Looks like I can stay Quinn,'' Sam joked. ''What about you?''

''I like her,'' Andy said. ''I think we should keep her too.''

''Yeah,'' Sam agreed. ''Definitely a keeper.''

XX

**-The end-**


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